After Manchester City’s struggles last season under former manager Manuel Pellegrini, the appointment of Pep Guardiola has quickly renewed confidence at the Etihad, with the former Barcelona and Bayern boss wasting little time in adapting the club to his methods. The two times Champions League winning manager has enforced strict requirements for his squad, and with the Spaniard seemingly not content with his current assets, we can expect to see more activity in the transfer market before the window closes at the end of the month.
Guardiola has initially signed a three-year contract, but has set no time-frame for his departure, despite candidly admitting it won’t be his final job in football.
However, his record of 21 trophies in seven seasons at Barcelona and Bayern, almost guarantee success with City, and when the whistle blows on the opening weekend, his side will be the 5/2 favourites for the title in the football betting market with bookmakers Coral.
With the arrivals of Spanish international Nolito and former Borussia Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gundogan adding to the depth within City’s squad so far, Leroy Sane and John Stones are expected to be the next big money arrivals at the Etihad. Despite reportedly being given a deadline to seal the transfer of the Schalke winger, the young prodigy is still expected to complete such a move. As for England man Stones, having been denied a move to Stamford Bridge last year, a transfer to link up with Guardiola now seems only a matter of time. Coral certainly seem confident of the deal, offering odds of 1/8 in the football betting for Stones to become a City player before the season starts.
City begin the season at home against David Moyes’ Sunderland, and with just a matter of weeks until the big kick off, Guardiola is keen to separate the wheat from the chaff within his new squad. Samir Nasri, Aleksander Kolarov and Wilfried Bony all look to be potential casualties of Guardiola’s regime, with a number of potential suitors keeping an eye on matters. City are 2/9 on with Coral to start the season with three points on the opening weekend.
Guardiola will be renewing his rivalry with Jose Mourinho this season, with the duo both given the task of restoring their respective clubs to the top of the English game. The pair famously clashed on numerous occasions during their time in Spain, and will undoubtedly be one of the major talking points in this season’s Premier League.