Manchester City's success in the next cycle will depend largely on the young players that the club has invested in. If defenders Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis, midfielders Nico Gonzalez, Claudio Echeverri and Rico Lewis, strikers Savinho, Jeremy Doku, Oscar Bobb and James McAtee can reach their full potential, Man City's next formidable squad will not be far away.
Savinho, Khusanov and Lewis - all of whom started against Liverpool and are all just 20. Meanwhile, Reis and Echeverri, two of the bright prospects from South America, are still teenagers. The main problem for young players is always the risk factor.
It is impossible to know at the age of 19 or 20, who can become the best player in the world when they are 25 or 26. The Citizens can only hope that this gamble will succeed.
Man City has one of the best academy squads in England, currently leading the Premier League 2 (for the under-21 age group) and the Northern Premier League under-18 group. Midfielder Nico O'Reilly (19 years old) and defender Jahmai Simpson-Pusey (19 years old) have both played this season, while striker Divin Mubama (20 years old) scored against Salford City in the FA Cup in January.
Man City are good at transferring young players for large fees, despite having rejected a significant offer from Chelsea to O'Reilly on the last day of the January transfer window. This decision could be affected by the growing sense that Man City were reckless in selling Cole Palmer to Chelsea in 2023.
"We have a very young squad. The front trio of Haaland, Savinho and Doku are the future. Nico will be a mainstay and Rodri is about to return. And of course, Khusanov and Gvardiol are both very young," said the Spaniard.
As for Pep Guardiola, he has calmed down the noise surrounding his own future by renewing his contract in November last year. The deal runs until 2027 and Guardiola has affirmed after the Champions League defeat to Real Madrid that he will respect it.
However, that has continuously raised questions about whether Guardiola needs the tension to go along with another comeback. He has achieved everything in England and the only remaining challenge in his coaching career is leading a national team in a major tournament.
After such a tiring campaign and many problems to solve, Man City fans will only be confident that Guardiola will definitely stay when they see him on the field to prepare for next season.
