Man City have an XI ready to give Enzo Maresca what he needs but one big question lingers
Manchester City are back in action this week and the pre-season clash with Inter Milan in Hong Kong will naturally evoke memories of that famous Istanbul night when Rodri etched his name into City legend with the winning goal in a Treble-securing Champions League final.
Three-and-a-bit years on, and Rodri is one of the main narratives of an increasingly busy City summer as the Blues try to plot their way back to glory at home and abroad.
Since that heady night in Turkey, City have not been beyond the quarter-finals in the Champions League and they haven’t claimed the Premier League title since 2024. That is hardly an age ago, and two domestic cup victories last season point to the success and quality City possess, but having seen first Liverpool and then Arsenal sweep to top-flight glory, City will be keen to re-establish themselves as top dogs at home and competitive animals in Europe.
Enzo Maresca is the man in the hotseat following the departure of Pep Guardiola after a glittering decade in charge, and the new boss spoke of the privilege of being back at City for a third spell having spent a season with the academy and another as Guardiola’s assistant in that Treble-winning campaign.
He and City would love another season like that and Maresca’s time at Chelsea, where he won the Club World Cup in style by dismantling a PSG side who had just won one Champions League title and would go on to win another 11 months later, points to a man capable of masterminding success against Europe’s best.
Domestically, champions Arsenal are the favourites for the Premier League but City have done their biggest bit of business early in securing Elliot Anderson for a club-record £116million deal. The Blues remain in the market for a winger and a right back to compete with Matheus Nunes, while they are keen on Lille’s teenage prodigy Ayyoub Bouaddi to further bolster the midfield.
But while all those additions would flesh out a squad and help add depth to a team likely to play upwards of 60 games, the biggest bit of business will be Rodri. Fresh from winning the World Cup and being crowned the best player at the tournament, the midfielder is wanted by Real Madrid. The 30-year-old is in the final year of his City contract with a new offer on the table but unsigned. It remains to be seen where the Spaniard will be come September 1, but all at the Etihad hope he’ll be calling Manchester home for at least one more season.
A pairing of Rodri and Anderson could lay claim to being the Premier League’s best, but perhaps more than what the City talisman can offer on the pitch is what he will bring behind the scenes. Rodri is a leader, a potential captain and a player with so much experience and nous to help City navigate the choppy waters of a title race as well as develop those around him, such as Anderson and potentially Bouaddi.
To lose him, having already bid farewell to Bernardo Silva and John Stones this summer and seen a vast amount of experience depart over the past 18 months, would leave City looking a little light on that unquantifiable characteristic of difference makers.
It’s maybe too simple to say with Rodri City can be champions at home and abroad and without him they can’t, but it’s perhaps not far off the reality – as was borne out by the relentless run early this year with Rodri and Bernardo together in midfield that ended with the former picking up an injury in a victory over Arsenal at the Etihad which felt season-defining.
But without Rodri, City stumbled at Everton and Arsenal didn’t look back. To challenge and overhaul the Gunners this time around will be a tough ask but the Blues have a side more than capable.
Gianluigi Donnarumma produced some huge moments in his debut campaign even if there was a gaffe or two along the way, while Nico O’Reilly was a star performer and is the reigning Premier League Young Player of the Year. Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol, Marc Guehi and Abdukodir Khusanov are as good a centre back quartet as you will see and Nunes was much-improved at right back, while further resource could strengthen that flank.
Anderson was a standout for a struggling Nottingham Forest side last season and had a brilliant World Cup. There are no doubts over him slotting in at City. Jeremy Doku showed his class time and again last term while Antoine Semenyo produced big moments in the months following his January arrival, and Rayan Cherki enjoyed a superb debut campaign at the club. And Erling Haaland is Erling Haaland.
What City will want is a little bit more from those who were used a little bit less last season. Guardiola settled on an XI for the final few months of the season and it meant several were out in the relative cold. Chief among them was Phil Foden but, fresh from signing a new contract and a summer off having been left out of England’s World Cup squad, the 26-year-old has returned fit and firing and eager to rekindle his relationship with Maresca.
Midfield duo Nico Gonzalez and Tijjani Reijnders have questions over their long-term future at City and both struggled for consistency when called upon last season. Adding Bouaddi to the midfield ranks would bring another dimension but placing an emphasis on an 18-year-old to make things tick would be a gamble.
Up front, Omar Marmoush failed to impress in a campaign hampered by injury and being away at the Africa Cup of Nations, and the Egypt international could potentially depart this summer, while Savinho looks certain to leave with long-term admirers Tottenham stepping up their interest. James Trafford is another set to go, while Mateo Kovacic could depart and Jack Grealish is also likely to move on.
There are plenty of questions around City’s squad, but the first XI is bereft of weakness and swimming in strengths. Arsenal have yet to make a marquee addition and will want to strengthen while on top. Liverpool and Chelsea are under new management and Michael Carrick at Manchester United faces a whole new challenge with the return of European football. Tottenham could be revitalised after a big summer of spending under Roberto De Zerbi and you wouldn’t bet against Unai Emery working more magic at Aston Villa despite selling talisman Morgan Rogers.
But it’s hard to make a standout claim for any of those potential challengers to Arsenal’s title being in a better place than City. The final few weeks of the window will obviously be pivotal to plenty, but City look well-positioned.
“It’s a challenge to try to do the right things immediately for this organisation, for the fans, for everyone,” said Maresca. “I’m confident that we can do a great job.”
The next few weeks will go a long way to determining the success of the next 10 months.
