Manchester City has made a remarkable addition to the midfield when recruiting Elliot Anderson for a record fee of 116 million pounds. The England international is quickly expected to fill the void left by Bernardo Silva thanks to his impressive tackling and ball recovery ability.
Last season, Anderson was the only player in the Premier League to regain ball control at least 10 times in 11 matches, showing wide operating range and effective defensive support. This is a quality that Man City desperately needed after the departure of Bernardo Silva, who had 146 ball recoveries in the league, second only to Matheus Nunes.
However, besides Anderson, the midfield of the Etihad home team still has many question marks.
Rodri just had a successful 2026 World Cup when he and the Spanish national team won the championship and won the Golden Ball, and also set a record for the most passes in the history of the tournament. However, the 30-year-old midfielder just had a back surgery and will need time to recover. Besides, rumors of interest from Real Madrid also make his future unpredictable.
Meanwhile, Nico Gonzalez enters a pivotal season. The Spanish midfielder possesses many qualities similar to Rodri such as interception, passing and controlling the pace of the match. However, he still needs to improve his ability to create breakthroughs in attack if he wants to become coach Enzo Maresca's top choice.
Mateo Kovacic continues to be an experienced mainstay in Man City's midfield. Despite being affected by injury last season, the Croatian midfielder still maintains excellent ball circulation with a pass accuracy rate of up to 91.4% in the opponent's half, among the best in the Premier League.
On the contrary, Tijjani Reijnders has not yet met expectations. After an impressive debut, the Dutch midfielder gradually lost his influence. Reijnders' strength lies in his penetrations into the penalty area and moving without the ball, but he still lacks the necessary strength to adapt to the intensity of the Premier League.
Notably, Reijnders also has to compete directly with Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden in the attacking midfielder position, making regular playing opportunities not really wide open.
Besides, young talents like Nico O'Reilly and Rico Lewis may also be given opportunities in midfield by Enzo Maresca. However, both still need more time to prove their ability to play stably in a top-level environment.
Despite having many quality options, The Citizens' midfield has not yet brought absolute peace of mind. Problems with injuries, form and squad depth may force the Etihad home team to continue looking for another midfielder before the transfer window closes if they want to maintain their competitive ambition in all competitions.
