It’s been a relatively disappointing season so far for Manchester City — Pep Guardiola’s team currently sit seven points behind Arsenal in the Premier League table and are coming off the back of a dismal derby-day defeat against a resurgent Manchester United on the weekend. However, with Arsenal also dropping points on Saturday, and the Gunners’ recent habit of letting themselves down towards the end of the season, City are very much still in the title race. With that in mind, it is shaping up to be another big January transfer window on the blue side of Manchester.
City started off the window with a strong statement of intent by signing arguably the best winger in the Premier League this season, Antoine Semenyo, paying his £62.5m release clause to steal him from Bournemouth. The Ghanaian had always been a solid option for the Cherries but really started to show his worth this season, racking up ten goals and three assists in 21 appearances in the league.
With many of the other ‘Big 6’ Premier League teams in more desperate need of a winger than City, who already boasted the likes of Rayan Cherki, Jeremy Doku, Savinho, and Phil Foden in their squad, it looked like there would be fierce competition for Semenyo’s signature this month. The player, however, made it clear early on that the Etihad was his preferred destination as he looks to make the Premier League the first major trophy of his career. And the early signs are showing that it was a good decision, as Semenyo has already bagged two goals and an assist in his first three appearances in sky blue.
With their attack revitalised, City have looked in the last few days to bolster their defence by signing Crystal Palace captain and England centre-back Marc Geuhi. The Englishman saw a summer transfer to Liverpool collapse on deadline day, and the Reds will be kicking themselves watching him sign for City for just £20m as Palace chose to cash in before his contract was due to expire in June. The move was prompted by injuries to Josko Gvardiol and Ruben Dias, and it looks like Geuhi will be at the heart of their backline for the foreseeable future.
However, these signings have rekindled the debate around Pep buying his way out of trouble whenever the team starts to struggle. Let’s not forget, it was just 12 months ago that they splashed £200m on Marmoush, Khusanov, Gonzalez and Reis — none of whom have yet become consistent starters. With the court case surrounding City’s financial breaches still looming over the club, it begs the question of how they can continue to spend in this fashion.
It remains to be seen whether or not their investment this January goes any better than last year, but either way, Arsenal will certainly be looking nervously over their shoulders as we approach the business end of the season.
“2023-10-04 Fußball, Männer, UEFA Champions League, RB Leipzig – Manchester City FC 1DX 2799” by Steffen Prößdorf is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.