Manchester City have the perfect manager to return their investment in youth, but the former Bayern boss must also deliver immediate success
Put faith in youth…
Manchester City have spent a huge amount of time and money on building their youth academy, and in Pep Guardiola they have the perfect manager to produce a return on that investment.
The Spaniard has an excellent record in developing young players.
During his time at Barcelona, he promoted Sergio Busquets, Pedro, Thiago and Marc Bartra and made them important members of the first-team squad.
Guardiola knew the famous La Masia academy well, having managed Barcelona B for a year before he was promoted to the senior side, and he utilised the talent available to him.
At Bayern, however, he was less comfortable trusting the club’s youth system, with Gianluca Gaudino and Pierre Hojbjerg the only academy players to make any impact during the Spaniard’s tenure.
Instead, he identified and signed young players from other clubs – Juan Bernat, Thiago and Joshua Kimmich have all become first-team members after joining in the past three years.
At his City unveiling, Guardiola said he plans to evaluate the club’s youngsters to decide how many are ready to join the senior side.
Whether he looks for the next Kelechi Iheanacho or brings in his own young targets, he must freshen up this ageing squad.
… While achieving immediate success
It is not all about the future for City, though.
Failing to win the Premier League would be viewed as a major disappointment in Guardiola’s first season at the club.
To do so, the Spaniard will have to overcome undoubtedly the biggest challenge of his career.
The Premier League is the most competitive league that he has managed in, and for the first time he is inheriting a squad that did not win the title in the previous campaign.
City were, in fact, not even close to lifting the trophy, and many of the players they relied upon in their previous triumphs have since underperformed.
New signings will arrive, but Guardiola must reduce the wage bill, with Jesus Navas, Samir Nasri and Wilfried Bony among the big earners who could be offloaded.
Joe Hart could also come under pressure after his disappointing performances for England at Euro 2016.
The 29-year-old has become worryingly error-prone, and it is worth remembering that Guardiola’s last goalkeeper was Manuel Neuer.
Keepers must be adept at using their feet in Guardiola’s system but it is difficult to imagine Hart improving that area of his game sufficiently, given that he is currently struggling with even the basics of goalkeeping.
Show Toure the door
One man who should certainly be allowed to leave is Yaya Toure.
The Ivorian has been one of the club’s best ever players, but at the age of 33 he has little to offer.
While he produced the occasional inspirational moment last season – his 20-yard strike against Arsenal was stunning – he coasted through too many games.
Toure’s occasional outbursts in the press – including the infamous birthday cake row – could be tolerated when he was among the best midfielders in the Premier League.
But he is not the force he once was, and in Ilkay Gundogan City have signed player a capable of taking over as the primary playmaker in the midfield.
They must cash in on him before it is too late – he will be 34 by the time his contract ends next summer and it is hard to imagine him justifying a new deal in the upcoming season.
Revamp the defence
Guardiola’s previous sides, while flowing in attack, have been built on a reliable defence.
At Barcelona, he had Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol, flanked by Eric Abidal and Dani Alves. With Bayern, it was Jerome Boateng, Dante, Philipp Lahm and David Alaba.
His defensive options at Manchester City, however, are less than impressive.
All of the club’s defenders come with question marks: Vincent Kompany cannot stay fit, Eliaqium Mangala and Nicolas Otamendi have looked shaky and all of the four full-backs are in their 30s.
Clearly, investment is needed to build a defence capable of winning the Premier League.
John Stones is clearly a target, but while the 22-year-old shows huge promise, he was poor for Everton last year and can’t even get into England’s porous back four.
Stones alone won’t be enough – Guardiola must invest heavily in what is evidently the weakest area of his squad.
Fail to do so, and he will struggle to match Leicester, Arsenal, Spurs and Manchester United, all of whom conceded less goals than City last season.
Rebuild Raheem
Since his £49m move to City last summer, Raheem Sterling’s stock has fallen dramatically.
He struggled with injuries and poor form during his first season at the Etihad, and was also made a scapegoat for England’s failure at Euro 2016.
Sterling has, unjustifiably, faced some nasty criticism in the past few weeks.
Yes, he has been poor for club and country recently, but it is easy to forget that he is just 21 years old, and he remains one of the country’s most exciting young talents.
As a player he thrives on confidence, and it is Guardiola’s job to rebuild the winger’s self-belief.
At his best, he is a huge asset to have in the squad and he has the technical ability to play in the manager’s system.
Guardiola relied heavily upon fleet-footed wingers Douglas Costa and Kingsley Coman at Bayern last season, and he will surely envision a similar role for Sterling.
