World-renowned manager Pep Guardiola is stepping into what will undoubtably be his toughest job yet, a struggling Manchester City side who barely made it into the Champions league last season.
Will he bring the tikki-takka style of play to the Etihad Stadium or will he adopt a new approach?
One thing is for certain, much like City have done in the past, he will need to spend big!
The club have their superstars like De Bruyne and Silva, though there are a few weak areas that could be strengthened and these are the five players who could do just that.
Considering the sheer size of his name in the European game, and the manner of his complicated rebuilds would surely suggest he would turn to tried and trusted lieutenants.
So, without further ado, here are FIVE players Guardiola has worked with before that he should bring to his Man City revolution.
Pedro
£49m man Raheem Sterling has so far, been a bit of a flop at Manchester City. The former Liverpool wingers sub-par performances will have Pep thinking he can do better in that position, and who better than a player you’ve played with before and won numerous titles with, Pedro.
The Spaniard meanwhile has had a tough first season at Chelsea but his quality is still there and the hard part has been done, drawing him away from his beloved Barcelona.
Now, the right amount of money and the chance to play under Pep again and the World Cup winner could make the move to the Etihad and have a vital role to play in a potential title winning season.
Jerome Boateng
A former Manchester City man himself. After one unsuccessful season in the 2010/11 season with Manchester City, Boateng departed for Bayern Munich and the rest is history.
With a World Cup and multiple league titles to his name, Pep needs to make this move happen sooner, rather than later. Last season one of City’s major issues was their inability to defend whenever Vincent zoom pant wasn’t on the pitch.
Considering Vincent Kompany’s injury problems worsening day by day, City need to bring in a formidable defender in order to both complement and cover the skipper in equal measure.
Strong, dominant and a good leader because that is what City miss the most when Kompany isn’t on the pitch, a leader.
With Bayern’s acquisition of Mats Hummels already this summer, perhaps they would be more inclined to let the ball-playing German go, given the price is right.
David Alaba
When Alexander Kolarov is the only real out and out left back, you know there’s a problem there.
David Alaba is without a doubt the best left back in the world at the moment and City are in desperate need of one, such is the nature of the
The Austrian brings so much to the table for any club lucky enough to have him on their side, defensively he is solid and focused and going forward he can offer pace down the wing, or cut in and shoot from range.
He can also play as a winger like he has done for his national side in the past, or as a holding midfielder like he has done for Pep’s incarnation of the German giants in the past.
A very diverse player and one who will no doubt want to play under Guardiola again .
Manuel Neuer
So this one is a little far fetched. Perhaps only suggesting Lionel Messi would be more ambitious.
Still, the botched England attempt to do anything other than complete embarrass themselves at the European Championships in France highlighted what could prove to be a huge problem for Pep.
However, 2 schoolboy errors from Joe Hart at Euro 2016 will have no doubt been seen by his future boss and now the England number one’s future is in doubt.
The vast funds available to Manchester City at least make the deal plausible. If nothing else.
Even when his defence lets him down, Neuer can win games all by himself and now more than ever in the Preimere League, that is exactly what teams need
Robert Lewandowski
Does this one really need explaining?
Although Sergio Aguero is arguably the most prolific striker in Europe today, he has had an injury plagued last few seasons for the Sky Blues and as much as the City fans inside the Transfer Tavern may not want to hear it, it may be time for a replacement.
What better player to replace the lethal Argentine than a man who last season, scored 5 goals in 9 minutes for Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich side against their main title rivals at the time, Wolfsburg?
The Pole is proven, in Europe and around the world and as far as strikers go, he has got to be considered up their with the likes of Aguero and Suarez.
City have the money to buy him, they don’t need to take unnecessary risks and buy an ‘unknown’ with ‘potential’. They just need a recognised goal scorer who can stay fit and strike fear into Premier League defences.
