Joško Gvardiol
LBCB
Croatia24 years
Showing2026/27 seasonAll official competitions
Preferred Positions
Last 24 months · all competitions
LB
Left-backMain
4,188 min · 55 apps · 47 starts
CB
Centre-back
3,366 min · 40 apps · 39 starts
Squad importance
Current squad importance over the club’s last 40 recorded competitive games in this spell, including previous seasons. Starts and minutes contribute 70%; performance contributes 30%. Absences reduce the score gradually, with less weight when a player is outside the matchday squad.Current role at Manchester City · independent of the season filter
Rotation
Involvement54%
Performance51%
Through the match on 4 Nov 2026. Refreshed daily.
Profile
Career & playing style
Joško Gvardiol is a Croatian defender who can play in the centre or on the left of the back line. His left foot helps him build attacks, while his forward runs allow him to contribute well beyond the first pass out of defence.
Born in Zagreb on 23 January 2002, he developed in Dinamo Zagreb’s youth system and made his senior debut in 2019. He won two Croatian league titles before moving to RB Leipzig in 2021, taking the next step in his development in the Bundesliga.
His two seasons in Germany brought German Cup wins in 2022 and 2023. He also scored against both Real Madrid and Manchester City in the 2022/23 Champions League, showing the threat he could offer at the other end of the pitch.
Gvardiol joined Manchester City in 2023 and helped win the 2023/24 Premier League. Pep Guardiola used him mainly at left-back in his early months. Although he had played there before, Gvardiol explained that switching from the centre required different positioning and a change of mindset.
His attacking range was clear at Fulham in May 2024. For the first of his two goals, he moved infield from the left, exchanged passes with Kevin De Bruyne and continued through to finish. The move exploited space opened by Fulham’s pressing, showing how a defender’s forward run can disrupt an opponent’s shape.
City supporters voted him their Player of the Season for 2024/25. He divided his work between left-back and centre-back that campaign, scoring five Premier League goals and forming a central partnership with Rúben Dias towards the end of the season. In January 2026 he broke his right leg against Chelsea and was out for four months, missing City’s League Cup final win over Arsenal in March.
With Croatia, he appeared in all seven matches at the 2022 World Cup and scored in the 2–1 win over Morocco that secured third place. He made four appearances at the 2026 tournament, when Croatia reached the round of 32 before losing to Portugal.
Latest stats & form
Joško Gvardiol currently plays for Manchester City as a left-back. He has represented Croatia internationally.
Statistics cover recorded official matches.