Pep Guardiola will be pretty happy with his first three months in English football in charge of Manchester City.

The former Bayern Munich and Barcelona boss took over from Manuel Pellegrini in the summer, and led City to ten straight wins at the start of the campaign.

However, that was then succeeded by a run of no win in six, with a 2-0 defeat at Tottenham – thus far their only league defeat – and a 4-0 hammering at the hands of Luis Enrique’s Barca reminding many of the hard work Guardiola will have turning this City team into his own.

Nonetheless, three Premier League wins in their last four matches and a 3-1 win over Barcelona at the Etihad at the start of the month suggests that Guardiola is beginning to get his ways across to the City squad.

City are third in the league following their 2-1 victory at Burnley on Saturday, and have also qualified in second place for the last 16 of the Champions League with one match to spare.

All in all, it’s been a decent few months for Guardiola, but he may feel that he needs reinforcements in January if his team are to be competitive on both the domestic and European front next year.

One area he could look at is his backline, so here is the dream City defence, including two key January targets…

RB – Bacary Sagna

The full-back options are a clear area of concern for Manchester City, but it doesn’t look like they’re going to sign Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin in January.

City were linked with the highly-rated full-back last month, but the 21-year-old has since signed a new six-year deal at the Emirates, all but ending any advances from the Manchester club.

Thus, it looks like Bacary Sagna will be the main man in that area for City, given that he has immediately regained his place in the starting eleven after a spell out with injury.

The French international looked to have adapted well to the demands of the full-back role under Guardiola before his injury, and is likely to keep Pablo Zabaleta out of the side should he remain fit.

CB – Virgil van Dijk

Southampton’s Virgil van Dijk has been one of the best defenders in the division so far this season.

The Dutch international moved to St Mary’s last year and, although he struggled initially to adapt to English football, he has since been sensational at the heart of the Saints back four.

And this season he has taken that up another level.

The 25-year-old is a chief reason why Claude Puel’s side have conceded just 12 goals and kept five clean sheets in the league thus far, and he had excelled notably against the likes of Sergio Aguero and Romelu Lukaku.

Unsurprisingly, van Dijk’s exceptional form has attracted interest and it’s City, who have Vincent Kompany sidelined with a ligament injury, that are hoping to bring the Dutch defender to the Etihad.

He’d be a great addition to the City backline, and could arguably be the biggest factor in whether or not they win the league this season.

CB – John Stones

A toss up between Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones, but the latter just edges it.

The England international made a £47 million move to the Etihad in the summer, and already looks like he’s benefitting greatly from Guardiola’s style of play.

Stones has always been a ball-playing defender and, although he is still making a few errors, the defender will be backed by his manager to keep persevering with his ways, and it could make him the defender his talent has promised him to be.

LB – David Alaba

As aforementioned, the full-backs are the chief concern at City, and it’s even more so at left-back than it is at right-back.

Aleksandar Kolarov has never been a great defender, and with him and Gael Clichy on the wrong side of 30, Guardiola may want to bring someone in during January to bolster that department.

One man he has been linked with, as have Manchester United and Arsenal, is Bayern Munich defender David Alaba.

The 24-year-old is widely regarded as one of the best defenders in the world, and played frequently under Guardiola during his spell in charge at the Allianz Arena.

His versatility would also give the City boss greater options at both centre-back and central midfield, and he could call upon his prior working relationship with the Austrian international when attempting a deal in January.

Nonetheless, with Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger also interested, Guardiola must act fast to get his man, as it could be a crucial factor in whether they win the title this season.