Pep Guardiola revealed what many people had guessed in February when he decided to not renew
his contract with current employers Bayern Munich
The former Barcelona boss is to be replaced by
Carlo Ancelotti at the end of the season following a trophy-laden spell in Bavaria
Speculation
persisted regarding his next destination but it was Manchester City who won the race for his
signature.
The Spaniard will replace Manuel Pellegrini at the end of the season signing a three-year-deal with
the club
City have lifted the Capital One Cup in PellegriniÂ’s last season but have fell short in the title
race; now facing a battle to remain in the top four
However, they remain in the last eight of the
Champions League alongside Bayern Munich
His reign will bring many changes to the club, we highlight what could be on the 45-year-oldÂ’s summer to-do-listÂ…
1
End the Yaya Toure transfer saga before it begins
When the summer transfer window re-opens, it usually brings with it transfer rumours surrounding
the future of Ivorian midfielder Yaya Toure
Whether it be over a birthday message, rumours persist
regarding the midfielderÂ’s future
His agent, Dimitri Seluk, has once again caused some controversy
this week over his clientÂ’s future
Seluk has urged the club to make a decision whether to give the 32-year-old a new contract this
week otherwise he will start speaking to other clubs
The move could be a way of ensuring an
improved deal but City are unlikely to be bullied by a player who could be seen as past his prime
Toure has played a pivotal role during Sheikh MansourÂ’s years of ownership, providing City with a
world-class option in the centre of midfield
He is only the second Premier League midfielder to
score 20 goals in a season after Frank Lampard in the 2013/14 season where City lifted the title
However, his influence is midfield is waning
His ability is unquestionable
Yet his work-rate and
effort levels have been scrutinised in recent seasons
The arrival of Guardiola casts further doubt over the former Barcelona midfielderÂ’s future
The
Spaniard was in charge of when Toure was sold to City for £24m back in 2010
GuardiolaÂ’s style of
play would require a high pressing, high-pressure setup
Would Toure be willing to be a part of such
system?
If ToureÂ’s future is not decided before Guardiola arrives at the club, it should be one of his top
priorities
2
Rectify Manchester CityÂ’s defensive Achilles heel
For all of Manchester CityÂ’s attacking potency, they have once again been let down at the other end
of the field
Without skipper Vincent Kompany, they have seemed incapable of keeping a clean
sheet
Their talismanic leader is another player who has played a vital role in the clubÂ’s success in
the era of Mansour
The 29 games he has missed, City have lost nine compared to three losses when
the Belgian has started.
In his absence due to re-occurring injuries, almost £80m has been spent by the Citizens to plug the
gap left by one of the finest defenders the Premier League has ever seen
The £32m purchase of
Eliaquim Mangala was ridiculous with the French defender looking nowhere near the standard
required to be successful in England
Martin Demichelis simply lacks the pace to keep up with the
leagueÂ’s top forwards and Nicolas Otamendi has been unable to fully adapt without a long-term
defensive partner next to him
KompanyÂ’s fitness cannot be relied on meaning Guardiola faces the prospect of arriving in the
summer needing at least two new centre-backs
City need to spend wisely on proven Premier
League talent
They require leadership and authority at the back to provide a solid backbone to
CityÂ’s attacking qualities
3
Out with the old and in with the new
One of the many benefits of the Manchester City hot seat is the seemingly unlimited transfer budget
that ensues
City recently sold a small chunk if the City Football Group to an investment company
from China with the club hoping to capitalise on the growth of football in that country
Coupled with
the record-breaking TV deal equips City with a transfer war chest for Guardiola to transform his
squad
Some major squad renovations are required with Guardiola set to remove some of the deadwood in
the City squad
It is unlikely that Joe Hart will be displaced as CityÂ’s number one with rumours of a
move for Manuel Neuer being nothing more than that
Willy Caballero became a hero during the
Capital One Cup final and should remain as deputy next season
The likes of Bacary Sagna and Aleksandar Kolarov could be allowed to leave the club as well as
Demichelis and Mangala
Defensive re-enforcements are needed and many big names have been
linked to the club
John Stones remains a target and represents good value for money at just 21
years of age
However, the England international has no Champions League experience meaning
other options could be explored
Athletic BilbaoÂ’s Aymeric Laporte is a more realistic prospect who
has impressed Guardiola with his ability to play the ball out of defence
In midfield, Samir Nasri and Fernandinho could be allowed to leave the club
Nasri has failed to
break into the first team following his move from Arsenal and his high wage demands mean he
should be moved on
Fabian Delph, Jesus Navas and Fernando may have a role to play as squad
players allowing the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and David Silva to flourish
City have
been linked with a big-money move for Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba but a move for Borussia
DortmundÂ’s Ilkay Gundogan seems more realistic; especially after GundoganÂ’s agent was seen
meeting with director of football Txiki Begiristain recently
Up top, GuardiolaÂ’s arrival could put an end to Wilfried BonyÂ’s Manchester City career
The Ivorian
has struggled to adapt since his move from Swansea and does not possess the right characteristics
that Guardiola looks for in a striker
With Sergio Aguero the main option and Kelechi Iheanacho as
his back-up, Bony could be set to leave in the summer
Reports linking the Blues with Zlatan
Ibrahimovic are farfetched due to the well-known feud between the Swede and the Spaniard
4
Fill the empty seats
Manchester City have been on the receiving end of many taunts from their noisy neighbours
Manchester United due to their inability to fill the Etihad Stadium this season
United have taken
strides ahead of most Premier League teams in terms of revenue whilst steps are being taken by City
to further globalise their brand
City have continued to expand their stadium at a rapid rate
The City of Manchester Stadium is now
the third largest stadium in England yet the empty seats continue to appear
Redevelopments are
still in progress to boost the overall seating capacity to approximately 61,000 upon completion
which would make it only second to Old Trafford in terms of size
Thousands of empty seats were visible during Manchester CityÂ’s Capital One Cup semi-final against
Everton where the side booked their place at Wembley
City also recorded their record attendance
earlier in the season against Leicester but empty seats were visible yet again on all corners of the
ground
Even during Champions League matches this season, the club have been unable to fill the
stadium
GuardiolaÂ’s arrival, new signings in the transfer window and a free-flow attacking style should see
City fans look to fill their ground
This must be matched by the club who simply must do more to
gets fans through the gates
‘Special’ nights created by the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United
are occasions that players live for and perform for
Guardiola must try to transform the Etihad into a
fortress to be feared
5
Give youth a chance
Few City youth players have managed to make the grade and breakthrough to the first team in
recent years
Due to an abundance of foreign talent purchased for big-money, opportunities have
been few and far between
Sir Trevor Brooking criticised the club for not giving young players such
as Patrick Roberts a chance to impress.
Under Guardiola, things will change
During his time with Barcelona, youngsters were given the
chance to impress
Both Sergio Busquets and Pedro were promoted from Barcelona ‘B’ and thrust
into the first team picture before going on to become key players for the side
Guardiola was also
able to nurture Thiago Alcantara into a key player for the side and a player he wanted to take with
him to Germany
“It's an amazing feeling that someone of the calibre of Pep has so much confidence
in you,” remarked the midfielder who duly followed when Guardiola came calling
Pep has also continued his track record of bringing youth prospects into the senior side in his short
time with Munich
He has devoted hours to develop the likes of Pierre Hojbjerg and Joshua Kimmich
this season
On-loan winger Kingsley Coman is also benefitting from the tacticianÂ’s tutelage, playing
a starring role in the league and helping knock parent club Juventus out of the Champions League
City do have prospects capable of making the step up
Iheanacho has displayed this season that he
has the ability to play at the highest level and he will be a player that will no doubt interest
Guardiola
Roberts, currently on loan at Celtic, could also see opportunities for first-team football
arise following his spell in Scotland and hope to live up to his £12m price tag
Brandon Barker is
another youngster tipped for big things and could be given an opportunity to impress in the first-
team picture
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Source : DSG
Source: DSG