Man City buy costly new midfield - but have they overlooked Haaland cover?
Manchester City have completed their squad overhaul - including a fully revamped midfield - to the tune of £458m, a new Premier League record for a summer window.
But that eyewatering sum does not tell the full story.
New Manchester City boss Enzo Maresca received the full backing of director of football Hugo Viana in his first transfer window in charge after replacing Pep Guardiola. Indeed, City’s record transfer fee was twice broken this summer.
A joint-British record £125m was spent on Maresca’s former Chelsea skipper Enzo Fernandez after £116m was committed on Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest. Morocco international Ayyoub Bouaddi, 18, was also brought in for £86m. The trio accounted for the bulk of City’s summer incomings.
The departures of captain Bernardo Silva, 2024 Ballon d’Or winner Rodri, Tijjani Reijnders and Nico Gonzalez means the City midfield has been completely transformed.
Senior club sources are said to be delighted by the business done not only during the past couple of months but in January too, when plans were brought forward to sign long-term targets Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi.
And if the clock is rewound further back, Manchester City’s rebuild of the team that won the 2023 Champions League really began in January 2025 after a difficult start to that season.
Just four players remain from the starting eleven and substitutes from the night they beat Inter Milan in Istanbul to win the continent’s biggest club prize.
Maresca now has the luxury of calling upon two established players in almost every position. City feel the squad is stronger at this point than at the beginning of last season which they believe has been achieved by remaining calm and trusting the transfer strategy.
However some big questions remain.
How will their new midfield signings all fit together?
And, despite the vast amount of money spent, have they actually left themselves without a back-up to Erling Haaland?
City’s expenditure of £542m on new signings since the turn of the year will grab the headlines, but it often goes under the radar how well they do at selling fringe players.
During this same period, they have recouped £334m, including £75m for Savinho, who scored only two Premier League goals during his time at City, as well as £65m for Rodri and £52m for Reijnders.
It gives City a net spend of £208m in 2026, which will be further bolstered by Tottenham’s obligation to buy Omar Marmoush for £60m at the end of his loan spell next season.
Sources had said during the summer that they were operating on a one-out, one-in policy and Maresca managed to replace almost every player that departed, aside from Nico Gonzalez and Marmoush.
With the side well stocked at left-back, it is felt that Nico O’Reilly will play more in his natural midfield position to ease the Gonzalez gap.
The club believe the record fee for Fernandez is justified by acquiring a proven winner at the highest level that will strengthen the midfield. Anderson was the summer’s number one target, while 18-year-old Bouaddi is seen as having all the attributes to develop into a world class talent.
City have won back-to-back games at the start of the Premier League season and Maresca will now have a selection dilemma each game as he possesses an embarrassment of riches to choose from.
The question is how the Italian will now fit them all together.
Fernandez, Bouaddi, and Anderson are all players comfortable across multiple positions in Maresca’s system.
Maresca has moved between a box and a diamond shape in midfield at City. The main difference between the two shapes is that the former has two natural holding midfielders and the second a single holding midfielder.
Against Bournemouth, Guehi paired Anderson at the base of midfield. O’Reilly, the left-sided attacking midfielder, was joined by right-back Rico Lewis, moving in-field to form the box.
Against Crystal Palace, left-back Josko Gvardiol and attacking midfielder O’Reilly flanked number 10 Rayan Cherki as the three ahead of Anderson in what looked like a diamond.
Anderson anchoring the midfield suggests Maresca sees him as Rodri’s successor.
While full of praise for Bouaddi, Maresca has stressed his youth, a nod to the fact that he will likely deputise for Anderson.
Bouaddi replaced Anderson against Palace and his short cameo came soon after the introduction of Mateo Kovacic. In pre-season, the Croatian appeared to be Maresca’s first choice holding midfielder but has since slid down the pecking order.
When he came on, although starting higher than Bouaddi in the midfield diamond, he dropped deep to get on the ball in holding midfield. When this happened, Bouaddi took Kovacic’s position higher up.
These rotations between holding midfield and central midfield are movements Maresca may also encourage Anderson to perform when others fill the space behind him.
When Bouaddi came on, he took up a holding midfield position, particularly in deep build-up play. Kovacic was positioned ahead of him as the right central midfielder.
But the position of these two players was fluid with Kovacic, comfortable playing as a holding midfielder, picking up these positions. Bouaddi, as a result, moved higher up the pitch. This ensured City’s retained their shape.
Versatility in the midfield four is key. Fernandez, under Maresca, was capable of playing at the base of midfield or as an attacking midfielder on both sides.
The last midfield spot, the number 10 position, has been shared between Foden and Cherki. Although Foden did play right wing against Bournemouth and Palace given City’s injuries, Maresca has spoken of his central quality.
Given Foden’s promising showings as a box-to-box midfielder last season – there is also a possibility both him and Cherki play through the middle together at some point this season.
Despite the positives around the recent window, Haaland is now City’s only first-team striker.
The 26-year-old is pivotal to the team, ending last season as the Premier League top scorer with 27 goals, and starting the new campaign by netting twice in as many games.
But should Haaland be unavailable, what are City’s options?
Marmoush wanted to play regular first-team football and was allowed to join Tottenham, while 21-year-old Divin Mubama, who did well in pre-season, joined Championship side Southampton on loan.
City believe they have enough flexibility from within their options to have not directly replaced Marmoush.
Semenyo operates mainly from the right flank but is seen as an option at number nine, having played in the position during some cup games last season.
Deadline day signing Ndiaye is another who can operate there and the £60m forward adds greater versatility and squad depth as someone who is a proven Premier League player.
However, of the forward, attacking midfield and wide options, Semenyo is the only one to get into double figures in the Premier League in the last couple of seasons.
Cherki, Jeremy Doku and Ndiaye have never hit that mark, while Foden is clearly capable, having hit 19 Premier League goals in 2023-24, but has struggled for consistent form in the last two seasons.
Unless a couple of those step up, it could be one to watch if Haaland either needs to be rested or gets injured.
