Blues may have to boost top-six rivals
BY the time the transfer window closes on September 1, City will hope to have one of the strongest squads they have ever fielded for a Premier League title challenge.
Erling Haaland looks guaranteed to score goals, while Julian Alvarez could be a shrewd signing if he can adapt to European football in relatively quick time.
There is talk of a defensive midfielder and a left-back arriving, and City have promised more incomings.
If four players arrive, though, that means some must leave to either recoup funds or keep the squad size at a competitive number. Too many players, especially in attacking positions, and there will start to be a handful of world-class forwards restricted to occasional substitute appearances. Even if City don’t want to lose Gabriel Jesus or Raheem Sterling – who have both been linked with moves away – it might have to be a necessity.
The futures of Aleks Zinchenko and Nathan Ake – two defenders already with limited game-time which would be reduced further if a new left-back arrived – are also in doubt. Both are likeable members of the squad, although City wouldn’t begrudge them the chance of playing regularly elsewhere.
So if that decision is made, buyers will have to be found. The Blues have a strong record of obtaining good transfer fees when selling players and this summer would be no different. It will be up to a buying club to persuade them it’s worth allowing an important squad member to leave.
It seems so far, then, that if City want an acceptable fee for one of those players, they may have to sell to a direct rival in the Premier League – something they’ve not done with a key player in at least a decade, if not longer.
When other first-team regulars have left, the Blues have been careful to sell to other clubs around Europe, who are only likely to play against each other in the Champions League, rather than help another side take league points off them.
Leroy Sane joined Bayern Munich, Ferran Torres and Sergio Aguero went to Barcelona, and going back a bit further, Edin Dzeko joined Roma.
That’s not to say City have not sold anyone to another Premier League club, because they have every summer. However those players have either never played for City – such as Jack Harrison and Douglas Luiz – or have joined a club lower down the division.
Maybe the last first-team quality player to join a comparable club was Emmanuel Adebayor when he signed for Spurs in 2012 after a loan spell there. Even then, he hadn’t been in City’s plans for a year. James Milner’s free transfer to Liverpool in 2015 could be an exception, although it was a move that suited all parties at the time, and Milner has arguably gone on to prove he was worth keeping more than City may have expected.
In general, though, the Blues have cleverly avoided allowing good, title-winning players to join a top-six rival. But if Jesus joins Arsenal, or Sterling goes to Chelsea, then the Blues may have to accept they are strengthening a side capable of causing them problems next season. But with two attacking arrivals, and possibly a new left-back, that policy may have to be stood down for a year to rediscover a good balance in the squad – even if they risk seeing some current players actively working against them next year.
If City want an acceptable fee, they may have to sell to a top-six rival in the Premier League