• last year
A look at the summer for the treble winners.
Transcript
00:00 Michael, moving on to Manchester City, just review their transfer window this summer because
00:06 we've touched on it multiple times, a lot of players who are very important in the treble
00:10 winning side have departed and it looks like Pep's trying a different sort of thing with
00:16 some of the players he's brought in, the likes of Kovacic, Mateus Nunes, Doku as well. What's
00:21 the latest and if you could review it, what sort of rating out of 10 would you give it?
00:28 I think you're right in what you say, really all of that, that they have lost some very
00:32 experienced players, Gundogan, Mahrez, Laporte being the big ones who have moved on. Obviously
00:40 Giovanconcelo as well went out and transferred in on loan but he wasn't in the squad in the
00:45 second half of last season. So they really have lost some experienced players, some players
00:49 that not just in terms of their decision making in the pitch, how they perform in Guardiola's
00:54 system, players that Guardiola absolutely trusted complicitly. They are big losses,
01:02 there's no way of dressing it up. You also factor in the Kevin De Bruyne injury as well
01:06 and they really have lost a lot of very important players over the summer. I think they've done
01:11 some good business, I think Kovacic is a really good sign in, I think Guardiola as well is
01:16 going to come in and be a really good addition as well. Doku has only played one game so
01:22 far but looks really impressive and is going to offer something different I think as well
01:25 that City already have. He's going to be much more direct, much more of a dribbler, he played
01:29 really well at the weekend against Fulham from the bits of the saw. So that's an encouraging
01:33 sign and then of course we've got Mateus Nunes to come in, I think he's going to really offer
01:37 extra options in terms of midfield. It's a conversation you and I have had before, you
01:44 look at that City squad and it looks light. I've always thought that was Pep's City squad,
01:48 it's only the last two or three years but it just works. Guardiola's got a way of making
01:53 it work, he likes to work with a smaller squad, he doesn't want to leave unhappy players out
01:57 and that is just the way he operates. So yeah, in terms of giving it a rating, five out of
02:04 ten maybe, I don't know. I should also mention one player I did forget there, I'm just remembering
02:08 his Cole Palmer as well, who didn't play a significant role last year but was always
02:12 an option to come off the bench and always a bit of a backup as well so he's one player
02:15 that's gone. I'd give it five out of ten purely for the fact they've lost so many significant
02:20 and important players and that's not any bad reflection on the players who have come in
02:24 but they're just big shoes to fill. Yeah, five out of ten for me.

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