With a host of Manchester City players representing their country’s at the Euros, many will be looking to perform and make first impressions of incoming manager Pep Guardiola.
The likes of David Silva, Bacary Sagna, Raheem Sterling, Joe Hart and Kevin De Bruyne will be all featuring in the tournament that gets underway on Friday 10th June.
As there is lots of transfer speculation flying around at the minute, a deal for German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan was completed on Thursday morning for a fee of around the £20 million mark. He will look to hit the ground running when he recovers from a dislocated knee cap which originally was deemed as very serious. However, the 24-year-old has had special treatment in Barcelona recently, and looks to be back fit again in late August.
Another player City have been linked with is young Spanish defender Aymeric Laporte. The Frenchman has been heavily linked with a move to City, and would cost the Blues around £38 million pounds. He is a player suited to Pep’s style of play, a defender who is comfortable with the ball at his feet. At the tender age of just 21, he would be a good investment for years to come as he would be a player to flourish under the coaching of Guardiola.
This leads us on to a player who might not fall in favour with the incoming coach, Eliaquim Mangala. He is a player who in the past two seasons, has looked rather awkward with the ball at his feet and has made high-profile errors. Therefore, when Pep comes in, it will be interesting to see what happens regarding Mangala, whether he will stay and develop under Guardiola, or will he be sold on to another club after just two seasons at the club.
Reports have surfaced indicating that Guardiola is willing to give Jesus Navas a chance to prove himself next year. Bacary Sagna is a shoo-in to stay following his strong campaign but could possibly fight for his place at right-back with Jason Denayer who is returning from his loan spell in Galatasaray.
Another player speculated to join the blues is England star Jack Wilshere. The Times are reporting that Pep wants to increase the amount of homegrown quota in his squad, with Raheem Sterling, Fabian Delph, and Joe Hart being the only English players in the current squad. Wilshere would be a good addition to the squad as he is a midfielder with a football brain who can manipulate the ball and keep it.
With all these signings coming in, there must be some going out to balance the books, and City veterans such as Pablo Zabaleta, Aleks Kolarov and, Yaya Toure all being linked with a move away from the Etihad. Toure and Zabaleta are being linked with a reunion with Roberto Mancini at Inter Milan as it’s clear Mancini is a lover of the two and would relish the opportunity to link up with the pair again.
One more change happening at City this summer is the modifications made to the City Football Academy. Incoming manager Pep Guardiola has requested for a whole new pitch to be laid and for the pitch to have specific markings on them to aid his tactical management strategies. He believes it’s easier to coach when the pitch is split up into sections.
One thing that is certain is the fact it will be a very interesting summer at Manchester City. With big changes happening all the time, the fans have reason to be excited. Especially as near rivals Manchester United have appointed Jose Mourinho, which will add extra spice to the Manchester derby, where Pep will come up against his old friend as they did in “El Clasico” back in Spain.
