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Does Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City Transfer Policy Suggest a Long-Term Plan?
- Updated: August 3, 2016
Pep Guardiola’s first press conference as Manchester City manager was a masterclass in quiet confidence. It was understated, yet permeated by an air of self-assurance. This is a man who knows he has an insatiable appetite for the game and the methods that get results.
When you’ve won 21 major trophies in seven seasons as a manager at two clubs, there’s no need for too much fanfare. Guardiola is universally respected and he knows it. There was no self-proclaiming himself as “special” or trumpeting his record. There didn’t need to be.
There was a moment midway through the briefing when he was asked if this would be his last job in the game. He spent four years at Barcelona before taking a year out, and he then completed his three-year contract at Bayern Munich before moving to City.
This is a man, it seems, who prefers short, intense bursts. Is he about to buck the trend and stay at City for the long haul—build a legacy at a club where everything is set up for long-term success?
“I don’t think so,” he said with a wry smile.
“Always I will be grateful to this club, to the people who trust me to join this country and join the Premier League.
“Of course I think the coach sooner or later has to prove what it means to play in England.
“Manchester City gave me this chance and for me I was grateful for that. I will do my best to achieve what we want until the last day.”
Any hopes City fans had of a longer stay than first expected appeared to be dashed early into his tenure—but the club’s transfer policy this summer perhaps suggests otherwise.
The focus is on youth. Leroy Sane, a 20-year-old winger with just 47 Bundesliga games to his name, has signed for an initial £37 million. He has potential in abundance, but his displays last season veered from brilliant to peripheral. There’s plenty of moulding and shaping to be done before he can be considered a consistent, top-class performer.
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Oleksandr Zinchenko, 19, one of the youngest players at the 2016 UEFA European Championship to impress, joined from FC Ufa for just £1.7 million. He, surely, was signed with the intention of being loaned out this year—but his pre-season displays have been so accomplished that it may see a change of heart. Still, he’s a raw teenager whose Premier League experience is non-existent.
Per Sky Sports News, John Stones remains the …
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