Manchester City’s £400m rebuild: How is new era taking shape under Enzo Maresca?

Here, the Press Association analyses how they look following the closure of the transfer window.

Significant signings:

Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea) – £125m
Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest) – £116m
Ayyoub Bouaddi (Lille) – £86m
Iliman Ndiaye (Everton) – £65m
Allan Elias (Palmerias) – £34.2m
Jeremy Monga (Leicester) – £10m
Geronimo Rulli (Marseille) – £1.7m

City have shown their determination to rebuild for a new era by flexing some serious financial muscle, spending more than £400million to bolster new manager Enzo Maresca’s squad. Elliot Anderson was an early statement signing and his £116m fee was later surpassed by the £125m splashed out on deadline day for Enzo Fernandez. Together with Ayyoub Bouddi, the highly-rated 18-year-old captured from Lille for £86m, they form a completely new and exciting midfield. Allan Elias and Iliman Ndiaye further add to the attacking options from wide areas. The well-travelled Geronimo Rulli brings experienced goalkeeping cover.

Summer departures:

N/A

Savio (Tottenham) – £85m
Rodri (Barcelona) – £65.4m
Tijjani Reijnders (Al Qadsiah) – £51m
Nico Gonzalez (Newcastle) – £50m
James Trafford (Leeds) – £40m
Nathan Ake (Fenerbahce) – £8.5m
Bernardo Silva (Real Madrid) – free
John Stones (Inter Milan) – free
Manuel Akanji (Inter Milan) – undisclosed
Omar Marmoush (Tottenham) – loan
Kalvin Phillips (Sheffield Utd) – loan
Jack Grealish (Everton) – loan
Jeremy Monga (Swansea) – loan

The turnover at City has been significant, with a number of established players leaving. The departures were headed by Rodri, the hugely influential midfield linchpin who returned to his best to steer Spain to World Cup glory in the summer. He leaves a sizeable hole for the new signings to fill, while the exits of Bernardo Silva, John Stones, Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji have also removed considerable experience and much of the core of Pep Guardiola’s squad. Tijjani Reijnders, Savio, Omar Marmoush and Nico Gonzalez have also moved on after relatively short stays, further altering the dynamic.

One to watch

N/A

While Fernandez and Anderson are familiar to English audiences, Bouaddi is more of an unknown quantity. His fee, which makes him the most expensive teenager in Premier League history, seems extraordinary for a player so young and inexperienced but City are confident he will justify the expense. A technically gifted midfielder who shone for Morocco at the World Cup, Bouaddi has already shown remarkable maturity for his age and looks likely to be given immediate opportunities in the heart of Maresca’s midfield.

Squad strength

The new signings add considerable depth to a squad that already boasts an array of talent. Erling Haaland, Phil Foden, Rayan Cherki, Jeremy Doku and Antoine Semenyo have all shown their match-winning ability while, defensively, Marc Guehi, Ruben Dias, Abdukodir Khusanov and Josko Gvardiol are a strong unit. The squad looks well equipped but the strength of the refresh will be judged by how well Maresca can make it all gel together. The challenge he faces in replacing Guardiola is significant and he will quickly need to impose his methods to ensure City maintain the standards they have come to expect.