As the transfer window approaches its Friday night deadline, Manchester City appears content with the current balance of their squad.
City has one final day to finalize any deals, having had a relatively quiet summer, with Savinho coming in and Ilkay Gundogan re-signing. The most notable departure was Julian Alvarez, who joined Atletico Madrid, while players like Sergio Gomez, Joao Cancelo, and Kalvin Phillips have left either permanently or on loan.
To bolster the squad, City has brought James McAtee back from his loan at Sheffield United, and before his injury, Oscar Bobb was set for an expanded role. Nico O’Reilly is also now an option for Pep Guardiola’s side.
Despite Alvarez’s departure creating a potential gap in the striking department, some fans are holding out hope for a last-minute signing to provide cover for Erling Haaland, especially given Guardiola’s admission that Haaland cannot play every minute of every game.
However, Sporting Director Txiki Begiristain indicated that City is satisfied with their squad depth, which he believes is sufficient to compete on multiple fronts. After learning the team’s opponents in the expanded Champions League, Begiristain stated, “We have a balanced squad, deep enough to compete in many competitions. We feel confident [in the Champions League]. The target is to get [to the last-16].”
These comments suggest that City is unlikely to make any new signings before the deadline, and while there have been rumors linking them to players like Kyogo Furuhashi and Orri Oskarsson, those talks have quieted down. Aside from possible minor outgoings involving academy or fringe players, it looks like City’s deadline day will be relatively uneventful.
