They won the 2021 Premier League with plenty to spare, but as any top manager will tell you, in the most competitive league in the world you must continually invest to stay ahead of your rivals.
Pep Guardiola’s side made a slow start to the 2020/21 campaign. But sparked by the arrival of central defender Ruben Dias, they went on a devastating run to blow away their rivals and ultimately win the league by a clear 12 points.
This summer so far, the Sky Blues are yet to add any new recruits. And with the new season set to start in just four weeks time, the pressure to sign a big player might start to increase.
Two of Manchester City’s fiercest rivals have already made waves in the transfer market.
Liverpool, who saw their 2020/21 season decimated by injury to their best defenders, have shelled out £36-M to bring RB Leipzig centre-back Ibrahima Konate to Anfield, and Jurgen Klopp says long term injury absentee Virgil van Dijk is nearing a return. The fitness of the Dutch master alone would surely cut that 12-point gap down significantly.
Meanwhile, Manchester United are very close to completing the signing of England star Jadon Sancho and the Red Devils are also rumoured to be keen on Real Madrid centre-back Raphael Varane, who could move to the Premier League club for a fee of around £50-M.
How will the Sky Blues respond?
In contrast, it’s been rather quiet at the Etihad where Manchester City are yet to replace the departed striker Sergio Aguero and Guardiola says his club is in danger of being priced out of an inflated market.
So much for the fear of COVID-19 damaging the finances of the top clubs!
The Sky Blues have already had an offer of £100-M for Spurs’ want-away striker Harry Kane knocked back and the City boss is struggling to make any headway elsewhere.
He is rumoured to be interested in Borussia Dortmund’s prolific forward Erling Braut Haaland, but I doubt £100-M would be enough to engage BVB’s interest.
Over the last few days, rumours have been circulating that FC Bayern ace Robert Lewandowski could be the next on Guardiola’s list and what a prospect that would be.
The Polish striker has been prolific throughout his seven-year stay in Bavaria, regularly scoring 40 goals a season and registering 203 in 219 appearances in all competitions.
Lewandowski has already said he’d be keen on a move to La Liga with Real Madrid foremost in his thoughts, but Guardiola might be tempted to speak to the striker who would be sure to rip it up in the Premier League.
As well as Kane, the Sky Blues have been keeping tabs on another of England’s Euro 2020 stars. Jack Grealish is on Pep’s radar, and though the Aston Villa star has plenty of admirers, City will be in pole position should Grealish be tempted away from his boyhood club.
The Three Lions fell short at Euro 2020, losing to eventual winners Italy in the finals. But in his cameo appearances, Grealish got the fans on their feet and gave opposition defences plenty to think about.
England had a great competition, but many supporters are still pondering whether they could have gone all the way had Grealish had more game time. If City are to sign the creative midfielder, they may need to offload a player to make room. But who?
Kevin De Bruyne remains Manchester City’s most important player and there is no way Pep will let the Belgian genius go.
And he is surrounded by creative allies in the shape of Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan, while midfield sensation Phil Foden looks set to become one of the best players the Premier League has seen if he continues his impressive progress.
The Premier League 2021 betting odds here at SBOTOP have already placed Pep Guardiola’s team as the odds-on favourite to win a fourth league title in five years at a price of 1.70. But as time goes on, signing a player could become more important, particularly if Liverpool, Manchester United, and Chelsea are more active in the market.
If Manchester City’s opening Premier League 2021 results are as patchy as their start from the 2020/21 season, it may not be as easy to fight back and then ultimately pull away from their rivals.
Titles are never won in the opening weeks of the season but they can be lost in that time. And for City to pull off another miracle would be twice as hard as this time, their rivals are going to be ready for them.
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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