This might come as a shock to many if he's chosen ahead of the Frenchman Eric Abidal and the new signing Adriano, but I am not one of them. He had an amazing first season for the club and has proved that he is good enough to replace Abidal in the starting lineup. Also, the Frenchman has had an injury-plagued season and a horrible World Cup, and is 30 years old. Moreover, he has somehow lost the amazing crossing ability he possessed, and when he played in a few later matches, he looked like a man who left his legs home. Maxwell loves to get forward and has improved his crossing a lot. It would be interesting to see how Guardiola uses him this season.