Feature

Premier League 2023/24 club previews: Man City

By Alex Keble 5 Aug 2023

Alex Keble says champions' summer of change may make little difference to their dominance

Ahead of the 2023/24 Premier League season, Alex Keble takes an in-depth look at each of the 20 clubs.

Manchester City

Watching Manchester City lift the UEFA Champions League trophy and become the first English Treble winners since 1999, it was hard to believe that just a few months earlier there were concerns Pep Guardiola had let the season slip through his fingers.

At one stage City, eight points behind Arsenal, looked set for a fallow year as they struggled to adapt to Erling Haaland. One radical formation change later, Guardiola had built arguably his greatest team.

He has earned our trust, then, despite another surprising summer of upheaval. Last year eyebrows were raised when Raheem Sterling, Oleksandr Zinchenko, and Gabriel Jesus were all allowed to depart. This summer the list could be longer.

It leaves Man City in a curiously unstable, or at least uncertain, position as Guardiola faces a fresh challenge to adapt his process - and to deal with the comedown that may follow the completion of their 15-year mission to win the Champions League.

Performance last season

Position Pos	Club	Played Pl	GD	Points Pts
1	Man City MCI	38	+61	89
2	Arsenal ARS	38	+45	84

Competition	Performance
FA Cup	Winners
EFL Cup	Quarter-finals
UEFA Champions League	Winners

PL performance last five seasons

18/19	19/20	20/21	21/22	22/23
1st	2nd	1st	1st	1st

How to improve on 2022/23

City’s points tally of 89 was only their fifth-highest total of the Guardiola era, and it was only thanks to a poor sequence of results from Arsenal in the spring that City were able to win their fifth title in six years.

There is room for improvement - and motivation to be found in a number of records in City’s sights. No team have ever won the English top-flight title four years in a row. No English side have retained the Champions League since it was reformatted in 1992. Nobody has ever won two consecutive Trebles.

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Guardiola will want a faster start this season and he can be hopeful of it, given that Haaland and his team-mates understand each other far better than they did 12 months ago. It ought to terrify opposition fans that Guardiola signings tend to improve substantially in their second season.

Key transfers

Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez have departed, Aymeric Laporte, Kyle Walker, and Joao Cancelo may be on their way out, and Bernardo Silva could join them. Treble winners don’t normally change this much.

Gundogan was instantly replaced by Mateo Kovacic, who may not match the German's goalscoring numbers, but whose press-evading and ball-carrying qualities can help bring out Haaland’s best qualities as a fast and direct runner in behind.

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Analysis: Kovacic can take City to a new level

Josko Gvardiol, signed from RB Leipzig, hints at Guardiola continuing with the policy of four centre-backs and no full-backs, although Walker’s recovery pace would be a huge loss if he were to depart.

Analysis: Josko Gvardiol: 'The nice all-round kid'

Mahrez has not yet been replaced, although in Julian Alvarez, Silva, Phil Foden, and Cole Palmer, Man City clearly have enough depth to cover the Algerian if reported interest in Michael Olise does not progress to a deal.

Tactics

Guardiola’s shift to a “3-box-3” formation in February triggered an incredible sequence of 12 Premier League wins to lift Man City to the title.

The system was built to accommodate Haaland’s desire to stay high, allowing City’s attackers to get close to him without sacrificing defensive strength against the opposition counter-attack.

In short, the 3-2 shape at the back holds the fort while two wingers provide the width so that Kevin De Bruyne and Gundogan could stick tight to Haaland. It’s a formation that allows Man City to dominate territory and build in the slow rhythms that bring control without leaving Haaland isolated.

There will be further evolutions this season, but it would be foolish to try to guess them. Guardiola is always thinking ahead and a busy summer transfer window necessitates further change.

See: Summer 2023 transfers

Reasons to cheer

Things have never been this good. Man City are undeniably the best team in the world and the squad contains many components yet to hit their peak, from young players like Alvarez, Foden, Gvardiol, and Rico Lewis to stars like Haaland and Jack Grealish still on the rise.

The FIFA Club World Cup offers the chance of a new piece of silverware this winter, plus participation in the UEFA Super Cup provide the opportunity, however remote, for a sextuple.

Reasons to fear

The Guardian reported in May that Guardiola intends to step down when his contract expires in two years’ time which could have a subconscious effect on Man City’s morale.

Analysis: Can Guardiola navigate City through summer of change?

However, Guardiola looks to have quelled those thoughts by hinting at a possible extension when speaking before the Community Shied. The only other fear is of a possible post-Treble hangover.