Guardiola attends Benfica match to scout new full-back

Pep Guardiola flew out to watch left-back Alex Grimaldo in Benfica’s 3-1 win over Braga on Monday, according to Portuguese newspaper Record, via The Daily Mail.

Grimaldo, 21, joined Benfica from Barcelona in December in a deal worth £1.25m but has excelled since then.

The City boss is widely expected to make strengthening both sides of his defence a priority in the coming months in order to fully implement his philosophy at the club.

Guardiola’s side will have a lot of work on their hands in order to sign the Spanish defender after Benfica included a staggering £44m release clause in his contract, which still has five years left to run.

Only Lisandro Lopez (9) has had more shots on goal of all defenders in the Portuguese Liga NOS than Grimaldo this season (8).

For more stats on Alex Grimaldo, click here to visit his WhoScored player page