City effectively turned their youth system into a money-printing machine but they could sure do with some of the talented players they sold
"Only when the last tree has been cut down, the last fish been caught, and the last stream poisoned, will we realize we cannot eat money." So goes an old Native American proverb. In a footballing context, Johan Cruyff struck a similar note when he said: "I've never seen a bag of money score a goal."
The two analogies apply perfectly to Manchester City right now. City’s considerable wealth, coupled with having the best coach in the world for almost a decade, industry-leading recruitment and shrewd moves off the pitch, has undoubtedly made them one of the best teams in the world. But right now their wealth is not exactly showing, as they contemplate a run of seven defeats and just one victory in their last 10 matches following their latest defeat by Juventus.
City have the highest wage bill and revenue in England, and the third highest in Europe, but their financial might cannot help them out of their current mess, at least not until the January transfer window opens. Indeed, the club seem to be paying a heavy price for not spending more in the last transfer window, when they brought in just Savinho and Ilkay Gundogan despite making a fortune from selling Julian Alvarez.
Article continues below
Just a few months after winning a historic fourth consecutive Premier League title, Pep Guardiola's serial-winning squad appears to have gone stale. Five of the 11 players who started against Juventus have been at the club since 2017, while five are over the age of 30, with Kevin De Bruyne 33 and Kyle Walker and Gundogan both 34.
City are crying out for some squad renewal. And the most frustrating thing for the club must be the sense that they had a homegrown group of players in the club's academy who were deemed not good enough to push into the first team but who have thrived elsewhere. While the likes of Phil Foden, Rico Lewis and Oscar Bobb have made successful transitions from the youth system into Guardiola's side, City have tended to view their academy more as a money-earner than a breeding ground for future first-team stars. And that is now looking like a huge mistake.