Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards says it's a boost to see Aymeric Laporte return to action.

Laporte was cool and composed at the back for 64 minutes in victory over West Ham.

"He's a left-footed centre-back, which always helps in the build-up play, he's got charisma, he's pretty much the complete centre-half in my opinion," he told Sky Sports.

"I know a lot of people talk about Virgil van Dijk, and he's been sensational, but when Laporte is fit he's up there with one of the best and you can see the manager trusts him.

"I think that's important for a player to have your manager's trust and you can see it every time he comes out on the pitch. I hope he's over his injuries now because he's got an important role for what City want to do this season."

Richards added: "I don't want to be disrespectful to John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi but when Laporte plays, you can see the quality goes up massively.

"Sometimes when Stones and Otamendi play together, you don't know who the real leader is but when Laporte plays, you can see who the real leader is on the pitch."