Pep Guardiola is consistent in his assessment of the challenges that await Manchester City each season he remains in the Premier League.
Some questions that can be posed to Pep Guardiola have the same answer every time, regardless of the context. Whether it’s about Guardiola’s future at Manchester City, the rivalry with Liverpool, potential signings, or the possibility of creating a dynasty at the Etihad. The response is always the same.
Guardiola will insist that City cannot afford to be complacent or to lower their standards. Because when they do, 19 other clubs will be hoping to knock them out of the Premier League and bring them down. This summer is proving Guardiola’s point once more.
The manager will always emphasize that the task of winning the league becomes more difficult with each year he stays at City, as rivals strengthen to try to catch them – and they also develop more ways to stop Guardiola’s approach. The regular flow of trophies will stop if he does not keep refreshing his City squad and the tactics he wants them to use.
As pre-season approaches and the new season is just a month away, he won’t be surprised to see all of their top-six rivals looking busy in the transfer market.
Liverpool have signed Darwin Nunez to replace Sadio Mane, and Mo Salah has agreed to a contract extension, despite paying a high price to keep him at Anfield. They also don’t appear to be done with the transfer market.
Chelsea came close to breaking City and Liverpool’s dominance last season before succumbing, so they took a £90 million hit by sending Romelu Lukaku back to Inter Milan, and have been linked with Raheem Sterling. City can attest to his ability to win a championship.
Chelsea have also been linked with Leeds and Brazil winger Raphinha, who looks very dangerous in the Premier League, under their new ownership, and there are clear advantages to weakening a league opponent by taking their best player. Tottenham did just that when they signed Yves Bissouma from Brighton.
Spurs could be a dark horse this season after looking impressive under Antonio Conte last season and making some eye-catching signings, while Arsenal will be looking to improve on their fifth-place finish in 2021/22. Gabriel Jesus will have the opportunity to prove to City that he is deserving of more starts, and Mikel Arteta should be commended for acting quickly and decisively this summer to improve his squad.
Then there’s Manchester United, who are finding new ways to appear clueless in the transfer window while also appearing close to signing Frenkie De Jong and possibly Lisandro Martinez. They could be an unknown quantity after a major overhaul this summer and a new manager.
So City have strengthened themselves, responding to a busy transfer market by embarking on a refresh. They could lose their captain, numbers seven and nine, and still finish stronger and potentially profitable than last season.
Guardiola and City will almost certainly have made their signings regardless of what anyone else does. However, seeing the rest of the ‘big six’ pull out their checkbooks will only serve to validate their activity.
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