Enzo Maresca will have to decide on two extra captains now that his Manchester City squad is settled for the new season
Manchester City's Marc Guehi
Marc Guehi was among the scorers for Manchester City against Bournemouth
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Enzo Maresca didn't just need new players at Manchester City but he needed new captains. Bernardo Silva's decision to leave on a free transfer in summer had been signposted from the minute he agreed to be captain, and it became increasingly evident this year that Rodri would also depart.
That still left Erling Haaland and Ruben Dias for Maresca as he starts the daunting task of following Pep Guardiola, but more leadership was needed. Having decided that he wanted to pick the captains, the new City boss has to decide whether to pick from the existing squad or promote new signings and spoke last week of needing to sign some leaders.
Enzo Fernandez looks an obvious choice after finally completing his £125m deal from Chelsea. The feisty midfielder was made skipper at Chelsea under Maresca - and just a month after Fernandez uploaded a video of him with his Argentina teammates singing a song with racist and homophobic slurs in - and has the advantage of knowing better than anybody else what Maresca wants.
The Italian wants an English player on his four-man leadership team and, while he may ultimately decide against it, there are credible options. Phil Foden has said he has to put himself forward for the captaincy at this stage of his career, while Marc Guehi was captain at Crystal Palace.
Guehi was one of two January signings that City made in order to get ahead of the competition. Both Guehi and Antoine Semenyo were bought in early to ensure that the Blues got them ahead of rival clubs, essentially kickstarting City's summer business at the start of the year.
And while Guehi looks the likeliest candidate to step into the captaincy group, Semenyo has been leading in his own way. Ruben Dias leaned on the Ghana international to pick the squad up with his energy when he signed from Bournemouth in the middle of last season, and he was a role model for the younger players on the summer tour helping them to realise what being a professional at a top club is all about.
Tottenham boss Roberto De Zerbi last week said that mentality could not be bought in the transfer market, but City look to have imported more than one leader this year that can help Maresca out.