Pep Guardiola clearly has a big squad rebuild lying ahead of him at Manchester City, but Arsenal could throw a huge spanner in the works for him.
Manchester City and Arsenal have been going at it hammer and tong over the past few years in the Premier League.
However, it seems like the Gunners have overtaken Man City now, and it’s time for Pep Guardiola to make City great again.
This current Man City team that has won so much under Pep now looks like an extremely tired and ageing one.
The legs on so many of Man City’s top players have completely gone, and that was clear to see during the 3-2 defeat to Real Madrid at The Etihad on Tuesday night.
Guardiola spoke to reporters after the game, and was visibly shell-shocked when asked about the controversial Rodri Ballon d’Or banner, after Madrid came back from 2-1 down to beat his side 3-2 late on.
All good things come to an end, and Pep is most likely relishing the thought of overseeing a real squad revamp at Man City.
The old guard are starting to show their age. The likes of Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan are nowhere near the levels they were at two or three years ago.
Pep has some big decisions to make this summer. Numerous new additions will be required in order to get Man City back to the top of the game, and it will be time to say goodbye to some players as well.
Could Arsenal beat them to the punch for three key deals though?
Pep Guardiola must bring three superstars to Manchester City
It’s clearly time for change at The Etihad.
The biggest problem facing Pep is that he has allowed this squad to get old together, rather than supplementing it with elite young talents here and there over the past few years.
He’s been made to pay for that now, with a challenging squad rebuild staring him squarely in the face.
There are three players out there who would instantly improve the way that Manchester City play as a team.
However, the big problem for City is that Arsenal have been heavily linked with signing all three of them…
Bryan Mbeumo
The Brentford star could be set for a big move away from West London when the summer transfer window opens. The 25-year-old has been consistently brilliant for Brentford in the Premier League over the past three seasons. He bagged nine goals and eight assists in the 2022/23 season, nine and six in the 2023/24 campaign and and he has 14 and three to his name this term. Mbeumo is an elite talent and he would provide Man City with a proper goal threat in that wide right position. Brentford obviously won’t sell the Cameroon international on the cheap – his contract expires in the summer of 2026 but crucially, the Bees hold the option to extend that deal by a further 12 months. Man City will have to go big to secure the Brentford star’s signature.
Martin Zubimendi
The 26-year-old Real Sociedad midfielder seems almost certain to leave the La Liga side in the summer. Zubimendi is one of the very best deep-lying midfielders on the planet. When he replaced Rodri at half-time during the Euro 2024 final against England, he didn’t miss a beat. The Sociedad ace is brilliant from a technical perspective, but he’s not afraid of putting in the graft defensively either. This season he has averaged 2.3 tackles, 1.4 interceptions and 2.3 clearances per game in La Liga. The Spain international would add some much-needed spark in the middle of the park for Man City, and he would obviously provide genuine competition and cover for Rodri – the best number 6 in world football.
Nico Williams
The 22-year-old possesses blistering pace – something that Man City don’t really have inside the final third, aside from Jeremy Doku. However, Williams is a far more cultured winger than the Belgian. The Spain international bagged five goals and 14 assists in 31 La Liga games for Athletic Bilbao last season, but he has slowed down this term with just four goals and five assists to his name so far. It’s quite common to see a fall-off from young players after an exceptional season – they’re progress is seldom linear. Williams will be a star of the game, there’s no doubt about that. He’s the next big thing, and if Pep brings him to the club this summer, it would give everyone at The Etihad a major lift.
Mbeumo, Zubimendi and Williams – the highly sought-after trifecta
All three players would totally transform Man City overnight, but Arsenal’s interest in the trio will undoubtedly represent a real issue for Pep.
Mbeumo has been heavily linked with a move to the Gunners by the likes of The Mirror. He has proven himself to be an elite Premier League performer, and is undoubtedly destined for bigger and better things away from Brentford. With Arsenal on the hunt for more quality competition for Bukayo Saka in the right wing position, Mbeumo seems ideally suited for their setup.
Meanwhile, Zubimendi seems destined to move to The Emirates to work under Mikel Arteta when the summer transfer window opens up (David Ornstein).
Finally, Nico Williams is another player who is being strongly tipped to join the Gunners in the summer (The Athletic). His release clause is worth around £50 million and that obviously won’t be a problem for either Arsenal or Man City.
All that remains will be for those three players in particular to choose where they want to play their football next season.
If Pep Guardiola is successful in bringing them to Manchester City, the days of domination at The Etihad could be set to return.
However, if Arsenal win the race for their signatures, it could very well be their time in the sun.
