by Predicted position of guardian writers: 3rd (NB: It is not necessarily the prediction of Unwin but the average of the advice of our writers)
Last season: 3rd
Prospects
A lot of money, around 300 million pounds sterling, has been spent in the past eight months to bring City back on the right track after a disastrous season according to their standards. They finished a distant third and lost the FA Cup final, leaving them Trophies. The last harvest of newcomers had a brief overview of life under Pep Guardiola at the Club World Cup and everything turned out to be promising. After Rodri missed most of last season, it seems that his physical form will decide the fate of the team. If Guardiola can bring him back to his best – and keep him in shape – after a horrible injury, then City can feel excited again.
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Guardiola indicated that City needed to adapt to the evolution of football, having struggled with the increase in physicity and physical form which dull their skills. The emphasis could be more placed on past opponents to try to open the spaces. Rayan Cherki, Phil Foden, Jérémy Doku and Savinho will be extremely important in a post-Kevin world in Bruyne. City fought more than ever when it was a question of breaking the teams last season and Guardiola estimated that his team was not able to face the physicity of others.
It will be interesting to see who gets a sign of the head for the opening weekend. Ederson has been Guardiola No. 1 for years, but James Trafford’s arrival could change that. The Brazilian redefined the position and Trafford, a former player of the City Academy, is part of a new generation who followed his strategy and tried to reproduce his ability to distribute the short and long ball. Trafford is young and not the finished article, but he has all the qualities to be a world -class goalkeeper for the years to come.
At the other end, Erling Haaland will be as dangerous as they are always, with the physical form the only question point which deposits him after a few disturbances. Unlike this time last year, Guardiola has a second striker on which he can all if necessary in Omar Marmoush. The Egyptian was an integral part of the city’s season after his arrival in January and should be fully settled, which gives them additional dimensions.
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The manager
Pep Guardiola took last season personally, angry with himself for failing to stop the slide and irritated by underperforming players. He will not accept a similar performance this season, especially after the important expenses on the team reshaped. Guardiola revised her coache staff, the most catchy meeting being the former Ljinders of Pep from Jürgen Klopp, who joined as an assistant coach. The change of staff will bring new ideas, something that Guardiola was looking for as he was looking for a refreshment in the field and in the canoe.
Out -of -field
These annoying charges will simply not disappear for Manchester City and the Premier League. He has the impression that this situation was dragging since Adam was a boy and that his rivals will continue to use it as a stick to beat the club, while City pleads innocence and claims a witch hunt. No one is satisfied with the state of business and everyone will want the purpose as soon as possible because it is a constant distraction. A freeze on ticket prices caused a good will after long criticism of the club’s desire to press every penny that they could get out of the supporters.
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Star signature
It is positive that City finally has an appropriate left back in Rayan Aït-Nouri, but Rayan Cherki is the most exciting acquisition. The 21 -year -old has been linked to the best clubs since his adolescence, but City has finally got hold of the Lyon attacking midfielder, who fell into the Maverick category. He dribbles, creates and scores goals, while having the ability to produce the unpredictable with the ball at his feet, and he can play in many positions behind an attacker. It is difficult to predict what he will do, which will concern the defenders. At a time when football is prescribed, Cherki can be the breaker of rules.
Speaker
A year ago, Oscar Bobb scored in the community shield to report that he was about to go out. He had experienced a large pre-season and Guardiola was confident in his qualities. The very well rated bobb was the reason why City was happy to separate from Cole Palmer, thinking that they had someone who could exceed him in his ranks. Unfortunately for Bobb, he broke a leg in formation and required a long period of rehabilitation, taking more time than any planned, which means that he made three premier league appearances, all as a substitute. There is greater competition in the positions he wants to play, but it is given that he could be a star turn.
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A great season for …
By his own admission, 2024-25 was not up to the high standards of Phil Foden. From the complaint of the price of the player of the year of the association of professional footballers for the previous season, Foden fell spectacularly. He assigned problems in the field to various factors, including challenges “out of mentally” height “and it is understandable that those who affected his ability to play. The 25 -year -old is a generational talent, having everything that his manager wants to a player, and he will be desperate to show it. Given good freedom, he should be the man who heads the latest embodiment of Guardiola football and a new era in City.
