While Manchester City are currently focused on their chase for a fourth consecutive Premier League title and back to back FA Cup wins, the summer transfer window is coming into view. But there is also a caveat on this summer’s transfer window. Another hectic summer of international football awaits with the European Championships and the Copa America on the calendar this summer. With that in mind, will Manchester City approach next season with a slightly bigger squad?
Traditionally, Pep Guardiola prefers to work with a smaller squad. Speaking earlier this season the City manager explained why he prefers to work a smaller squad: “When you have 20 players and six injuries they say you should have bigger squad but what happens when I don’t have injuries? How can I manage that? I can play just 11. If 14 don’t play for a long time, I don’t want to be manager. Every new player is a transfer or salary. That’s why you when you recruit you have to look for players who can play in two or three positions.”
The versatility of the Manchester City squad is another string in the world champions now. Players such as Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, Manuel Akanji, and Nathan Ake can all play in multiple roles. It is a valuable trait of many players in the City squad. Josko Gvardiol has also shown this trait this season. When he arrived at the club from RB Leipzig, the consensus was he’d slot into a role at the heart of City’s defence. Instead, the Croatian international has developed into one of the Premier League’s best left-backs. His immense value in the position was on show yesterday during City’s win over Fulham. The versatility of the Manchester City squad does cater for a smaller squad size. But could a hectic summer of internationals force a rethink for Pep Guardiola for next season?
Manchester City is likely to have a host of players on international duty this summer.
With the European Championships and the Copa America set to take place this summer, Manchester City will have a host of stars busy for their countries this summer. Click here to go to livefootballtickets.com to secure tickets to see City’s international stars in action at this summer’s European Championships. It promises to be a spectacular tournament with many of Manchester City’s stars at the forefront of the competition.
Across this season, there have been times when the champions have appeared tired. The Manchester City squad does carry a heavy workload as they contend for silverware on multiple fronts each season. Fatigue is expected to be a factor next season as the majority of City’s squad will only get a small summer break before their pre season begins. With this in mind, it is clear that Pep Guardiola could benefit from extra players in his squad next season.
The reasons that Guardiola likes to work with a smaller squad have been covered. But after several seasons with a busy schedule and a hectic summer ahead for the Manchester City squad, it does appear that a couple of extra bodies may be of benefit to the treble winners. The players are only human, and it stands to reason that fatigue could potentially be a factor at stages of next season for Manchester City.
Whether or not the world champions will go with a slightly bigger squad next season remains to be seen. But given the hectic summer of football that lies ahead and their battle with fatigue at times this season, there is a case for Manchester City to head into a new season with a bigger squad. A bigger squad may help the champions keep key players fresh across next season. It would also force Pep Guardiola to change his preferred method of squad management. It’s an interesting topic to look over, and one where the answer will only become evident come the end of this summer’s transfer window.
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