With Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola reportedly having agreed to join Manchester City at the end of the season, various reports have recently stated that the Spaniard has already decided upon his potential transfer targets for the Blues.
And according to the Sun, Guardiola, who has won more major honours in his seven-year managerial career than City have managed in their 136-year history, has been promised a project that would make the club the biggest football team in the world.
With the ambition being for City to win the Champions League under Guardiola, money will not be an issue as Guardiola looks to recruit the world’s finest talent.
City’s aim is to achieve world dominance with the foundations that would be laid should Guardiola replace current City boss Manuel Pellegrini at the helm of the Premier League outfit in the summer.
Many would argue that the Etihad side have been built for Pep, with the recent stadium expansion and the proposed future expansions. The £200 million City Football Academy has been built with the vision of producing the finest young talent.
However, in the meantime, Guardiola will need to spend big money to bring in players for the short-term whilst the effects of the new academy come to fruition.
Here we will be looking at the players that Guardiola reportedly wants to sign for the Citizens in order to achieve instant success on all fronts.
Hit Guardiola below to see FOUR players he wants Man City to sign!
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Lionel Messi
The first player on our list is probably the most improbable – Lionel Messi. The diminutive Argentine has been linked with an Etihad switch for several months now, growing in intensity.
A move wouldn’t be impossible, however, as the four-time Ballon D’Or winner worked closely under Guardiola at Barcelona, where the manager won two Champions League trophies and three La Liga titles.
And the Spanish coach is not the only person at the Etihad with a Barcelona connection, with midfielder Yaya Toure, chief executive Ferran Soriano and sporting director Txiki Begiristain present. A new-look City will build their team around the 28-year old, who would be expected to play slightly behind international team-mate Sergio Aguero.
In fact, SunSport revealed back in November that City had reportedly offered Messi a staggering £800,000-a-week deal in a bid to acquire his services.
Paul Pogba
As well as Messi, Guardiola has identified Juventus powerhouse Paul Pogba as integral to improving the team, especially since Yaya Toure is expected to be out of favour under Guardiola due to their relatively poor relationship together at Barcelona.
With the 32-year old Ivorian expected to be replaced soon, his French counterpart Pogba is one of the best young talents in the world, managing to impress in both fixtures against City in their recent Champions League group this term.
The former Manchester United midfielder was linked with a move to City last summer, but remained at Serie A side Juventus. However, the possibility of playing under Guardiola may convince the 22-year old to finally make the move.
Gerard Pique
Another player who has previously featured under Guardiola, the Barcelona centre-back is another former Manchester United player.
The 28-year old is another star on the wanted list as doubts have been cast over the long-term fitness of City skipper Vincent Kompany in recent weeks.
With Martin Demichelis out of contract in the summer and Eliaquim Mangala struggling to maintain a decent run of form, Guardiola may look to bring in a more consistent and defensively astute defender who is familiar with his style of play.
David Alaba
Another player that has been targeted is left-back David Alaba, who is currently plying his trade under Guardiola at German giants Bayern Munich.
Full-backs are an area of concern for City at present, with all of the current first-team options being aged over 30.
Guardiola will know all about the pace and power of Alaba, who is capable of being effective both offensively and defensively.
With former Arsenal defender Gael Clichy being classed as a ‘home-grown’ player, it is expected that Serbian Aleksander Kolarov would be the player to move aside.
