If it wasn’t clear before the 24/25 began it is now. The Manchester City squad needs a rebuild. It is clear now that age and the legacy of climbing the top of the football mountain several times over has finally caught up to Pep Guardiola’s squad. This season does look like the end of an era for Manchester City. Now, a new report has emerged that the City hierarchy has acknowledged that they have made a mistake by making 2025 the year to begin the rebuilding of the City squad. For me, that is a refreshing take and shows that the club aren’t hiding from the reality they are now facing.
Daniel Taylor has reported for the Athletic that the Manchester City hierarchy is aware that they may have made a mistake by identifying 2025 as the time for a rebuild rather than doing more last summer to accelerate the process. Furthermore, Taylor reports that some tough decisions are coming regards to the future of several of Manchester City’s senior players. It is reported by Taylor that Kyle Walker is one player that should have been phased out earlier. Daniel Taylor adds that it does appear that discussions over the future of Kevin De Bruyne, Ederson and Jack Grealish may be coming in the future. The report from Daniel Taylor covers a host of other topics on Manchester City’s recent slump and is a must-read for any City fan.
It is refreshing to see Manchester City acknowledge their error in an era where clubs rarely make such admissions.
It is refreshing to see that the Manchester City hierarchy has acknowledged that they have held on for too long with this current squad. In the modern era of football, it is common for clubs to not acknowledge the errors of their ways. In my opinion, Taylor’s report indicates that City is well aware of their current plight. While injuries and fatigue have savaged Pep Guardiola’s squad this season the signs were there last season that a rebuild was coming.
The signs have been there for some time that some of City’s players were beginning to drop off. Kyle Walker is one such example. The Manchester City captain has become a whipping boy of late but the signs of his decline were evident last season. Kevin De Bruyne is now getting injured more frequently. The same can be said for John Stones. Even a workhorse like Bernardo Silva looks to be tired. Those are signs of a natural decline that happens when players rack up miles on their legs and age catches up with players. But now it appears that City are well aware of the task that lies ahead of them.
But it has to be said that before the season began it did look like Manchester City could make one more run with the majority of this squad. Pep Guardiola’s side did start to season strongly before injury and fatigue hit. But it does now appear that City held on for one season too long.
Summary
The current situation faced by the word champions does remind me of a quote from NBA legend Michael Jordan in the documentary The Last Dance. Jordan was asked about how it felt to walk away after his Chicago Bulls claimed their sixth NBA Championship in 1998. He said it was maddening to him to not come back to try for a seventh title. Manchester City look to have had the chance that Jordan’s Bulls did not. But it appears that age, injury and fatigue have all caught up to this City squad.
Instead of making moves to build their next era of dominance Manchester City decided to go all in with this squad. Only Savinho and Ilkay Gundogan arrived last summer. That move looks to have caught City out. Injuries have ravaged City’s squad but the writing had been on the wall heading into this season. But Daniel Taylor’s report indicates that Manchester City are about to begin planning their rebuild. No doubt plans are already in place.
It is an exciting prospect to ponder what a rebuild of City’s squad looks like under Pep Guardiola. There will be sadness as club legends depart but that is all part of the game. How City go about their rebuild will be fascinating to watch unfold as it now appears to be a matter of time before it begins.