With Manchester City’s first-team squad returning to training on Monday, the players, the staff and Pep Guardiola would have been unified by a collective ambition of winning silverware next season.
Manchester City fans will be hoping that summer signings of Rayan Ait-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Marcus Bettinelli and Sverre Nypan could propel them to greatness as a side once again.
However, as Bernardo Silva pinpointed Manchester City’s struggles against Al-Hilal as they were knocked out in the Round of 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup, it would be remiss not to mention that there remain chinks in their armour.
By the time the 2025/2026 seasons begins, perhaps the Sky Blues could return to their best but as things stand, Liverpool’s ambition in the transfer market means they will be fancied by the masses to win the league.
Stuart Pearce tells Man City to sign Liverpool target Marc Guehi
Alongside Arsenal, Liverpool are Manchester City’s biggest threat in their pursuit to become the champions of England, especially after they stormed to the league last season.
While writing Pep Guardiola’s side off as serious contenders for the title would be premature, Manchester City’s defence remains leaky and it could be a factor that holds them back in the following campaign.
As a result, former Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce told Sports Mole that the English giants should try to sign Marc Guehi, who The Telegraph revealed Liverpool are the “favourites” to bring in if he leaves Crystal Palace this summer, claiming: “When they won the Champions League a couple of years ago, they won it off being very, very tough to score against. That was their key that season. I think everything fell into place, their back four was pretty consistent and played extremely well, Kyle Walker dealt with any problems, had that extra pace at the back, so that was their strong card.”
“It does worry me a little bit in their situation, Marc Guehi would be one I would go after. I’m a big fan of this kid. I think he’s the first name for England I would say in central defence as I see it and he’s got the ability to deal with things on-on-one on the counter-attack and you’ve got to be good at that if you’re a Manchester City player in the expansive way they play.”
“So, that would have been the recruitment I would have gone after and he plays the games as well.”
Marc Guehi named the Man City player he loves playing alongside for England
The Crystal Palace colossus has earned praise after becoming a vital player for both club and country over the past few years, with Declan Rice describing Guehi as “intelligent.”
Considering Liverpool have seemingly held a longstanding interest in signing Guehi, Manchester City would have to act quickly to secure his services.
However, if the 25-year-old made a move to the Etihad Stadium, he could find it relatively easy to settle in due to having played alongside the likes of John Stones, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish for England.
Guehi heaped praise on Stones in June last year, naming the Manchester City defender as a joy to play alongside for the Three Lions.
“I can’t speak highly enough of him. He is an absolute dream to play with. I am just following in his footsteps.”
The Englishman concluded: “Just seeing them two [Stones and Harry Maguire] play at the highest level consistently and never letting their country down has paved the way for me.”
