Manchester City have made one of the biggest statements in the January transfer window - by doing the opposite of most of their rivals.
Chelsea have thrown the chequebook at anything that breathes, Manchester United have brought in a striker, Liverpool struck early for forward Cody Gakpo and Arsenal are still looking to reunite Moises Caicedo with former Brighton teammate Leandro Trossard. City, by contrast, are letting one of their best and most experienced players leave on loan to Bayern Munich for the rest of the season.
It has been an extraordinary fall from favour for Joao Cancelo in terms of the swiftness and severity of how it has all fallen apart. Arguably the most reliable player in the team over the past two seasons still has more minutes than any other City defender this season, despite being overlooked for virtually every match since the World Cup.
ALSO READ: Joao Cancelo latest and your City transfer questions answered
Pep Guardiola has always said that a player can leave if they are not happy and can bring a suitable offer to the club, yet the timing of the move seems set to deprive the Blues of one of their fittest players in the squad without having time to bring in a replacement; one hasn't been ruled out, but it remains unlikely.
There are key figures at City who feel content with their options for the rest of the season, pointing to the success of Nathan Ake at left-back this term and the recent emergence of right-back Rico Lewis. The fact that there are fitness concerns around all of their centre-backs though - John Stones was forced off with a hamstring problem against Arsenal - and the difficulties for new signings to adapt to Guardiola's demands mean it is a major gamble whether City take a punt in the market or not.
Should they stick with their options, it is set to be a very quiet deadline day. Maximo Perrone has already been signed from Velez Sarsfeld as one for the future, a number of players have secured loan deals and defender Luke Mbete could switch from Huddersfield after struggling for opportunities there.
Such a passive day would add to the scrutiny in summer though. City boldly refreshed their squad last summer by allowing several experienced heads to leave and bringing in the Sergio Aguero replacement they had been waiting for, and this year could be no less critical.
Ilkay Gundogan is coming to the end of his contract with no signs that he will extend past June amid interest from elsewhere, while fellow midfielder Bernardo Silva has not been shy to talk about wanting another challenge. City cannot really afford to lose either without replacing them, and certainly will have to pull off something big if both leave.
Jude Bellingham will be one of the biggest sales of the summer window, and while City have not ruled themselves in for the Dortmund midfielder the likes of Liverpool and Real Madrid are wary of competition from Manchester as they look to seal a deal. There is an outside chance that James McAtee could be ready for the squad next season and Phil Foden has long been expected to move centrally, but whoever is picked City's midfield could look very different by the end of the summer window.
Cancelo's exit further accelerates the need to strengthen at full-back again. There will be no senior left-backs on City's books in the summer with Sergio Gomez failing to keep up since his move from Anderlecht, and with Kyle Walker also out of favour recently Guardiola will have to think long and hard about what needs to happen with a key area of his team.
Having signed on for another two seasons, the manager will expect a fiercely competitive squad for next season as he battles to make the most of an even smaller group for the second half of this campaign.
READ NEXT:
