The Catalan coach has a ferocious array of attackers to call upon after a flurry of transfer activity – but the hard part now is choosing who to start
Pep Guardiola often talks about his preference for having a small squad so that every player can stay motivated and avoid too much time sitting on the bench. He recently remarked that the 27-man roster that Manchester City have taken to the Club World Cup is "too big", with by far the most crowded area within the squad being in attack. The embarrassment of riches at Guardiola's disposal was illustrated by the fact the coach changed his entire starting XI from their opening win over Wydad AC for their second fixture, against Al Ain, which they won 6-0.
Even after leaving Jack Grealish and James McAtee at home, Guardiola came to the United States armed with 17 players who can play as midfielders or forwards. And while the massive numbers have proved to be a luxury so far as they have allowed the City to keep his players as fresh as possible, the rotation will have to slow down as the team go deeper into the tournament and the opposition gets stronger, beginning with Thursday's clash against Juventus.
City have to win their final Group G clash with the Bianconeri to finish top and likely avoid a last-16 meeting with Real Madrid. So how exactly does Guardiola fit all his wonderfully talented players into his team and pick his most formidable starting XI?
AFPAttack, attack, attack
Whether he was coaching his sublime Barcelona, his relentless Bayern Munich or all his all-conquering City side, Guardiola has often felt that attack is the best form of defence. His early years as a coach saw him seek to dominate the midfield first and foremost, while he infamously remarked in his first season at the Etihad Stadium that he wished he could play with 11 midfielders.
But more recently, Guardiola has been embracing all-out attack. In the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace, he deployed such a buccaneering team that Kevin De Bruyne had to operate as a holding midfielder in order to accommodate three players who would normally be considered wide forwards – Savinho, Jeremy Doku and Omar Marmoush – behind Erling Haaland. City lost at Wembley, although Guardiola stood by his tactics, claiming his side "didn't suffer" and created far more and far better chances, not to mention the controversial decision to not send Dean Henderson off.
Guardiola reverted to relatively 'normal' line-ups for City's final games of the Premier League season against Bournemouth and Fulham, both of which they won to seal a third-placed finish. But it was back to all-out attack for the Club World Cup opener against Wydad Casablanca, as an ostensibly 4-4-2 shape became 2-3-5 in possession, with Phil Foden sitting in holding midfield alongside Rico Lewis and Tijjani Reijnders, while Rayan Cherki, Doku, Marmoush and Savinho played in attack with support from marauding left-back Nico O'Reilly.
AdvertisementAFP10 players, three positions
Guardiola opted for wholesale changes in personnel, as well as in formation, against Al Ain, going for a 3-1-4-2 shape that utilised Matheus Nunes and Rayan Ait-Nouri as wing-backs to great effect. Claudio Echeverri enjoyed an impressive first start alongside a fairly quiet Haaland, with Ilkay Gundogan able to get forward a lot and score twice.
Alongside Gundogan in attacking midfield was newly-named captain Bernardo Silva. Cherki and Oscar Bobb, meanwhile, each came off the bench to score in what was a rampant end to the game as City tried, in vain, to gain a superior goal tally on Juventus. Guardiola is likely to pick a hybrid of both XIs for the last group game against Juve, although Rodri could make his first start of the tournament after coming off the bench in both games.
Guardiola has been cautious with his midfield lynchpin as he eases him back into action after his knee operation last year, but it is clear that Rodri will be a regular starter at the base of midfield in most games next season, most likely with Reijnders alongside him operating in a box-to-box role, albeit with the emphasis on the opposing area.
With Haaland practically secure of his starting berth as centre-forward due to his prolific record and the fact he has recently signed a 10-year contract with the club, that leaves 10 players competing for the three other places in attack – and none of them can necessarily be assured of a starting berth given the wealth of alternatives available to the coach.
Getty ImagesFoden must be prioritised
Bernardo struggled for much of last season as he lost his pace and power of old, but the fact he has been named captain would suggest Guardiola still plans to start him regularly. However, with it likely to be his last campaign at the club before his contract expires in 2026, it is possible that the Portugal international will occupy a similar role to De Bruyne last season, who started half of the Premier League games and came on as a substitute in seven.
Gundogan is likely to occupy a similar role if he gets his wish to stay for another year. The German can still produce against certain opponents and is the experienced and mature character City and Guardiola could do with having around, even if he will not be the first name on the team sheet.
Foden, however, should be looking to play as many games as possible to show he can recover from his recent wobble and rediscover the scoring touch which saw him score 27 goals two seasons ago on his way to being named PFA Player of the Year. Guardiola has a strong bond with Foden and is not about to give up on the player who he called 'the most talented player he had ever worked with', and nor should he.
Not only is Foden crucial to City holding on to some semblance of their roots in an era of globalisation, he remains a brilliant footballer when he puts his mind to it, able to simultaneously dictate the team's short passing game and help City dominate opponents while also being a source of many goals.
Getty Images SportMarmoush the biggest threat
Marmoush should also be a regular starter in the crunch games at both the Club World Cup and looking ahead into next season. The Egyptian works best as a left forward rather than a No.9, and rather than being a replacement for Haaland when the Norwegian is injured, he should complement him. Indeed, Marmoush's best games, such as when he scored hat-trick against Newcastle and unleashed a rocket against Bournemouth, came when playing alongside the Norwegian rather than in Haaland's two-month absence.
Marmoush arrived into a team in crisis in the middle of last season and mananaged to end the campaign as City's joint-second top scorer. His form for Eintracht Frankfurt cannot be forgotten either, wher he provided 15 goals and nine assists in the first half of the campaign before joining City, meaning he ended the season with more goal involvements than Florian Wirtz. Marmoush's movement creates space for others, but above all he carries a serious goal threat, which is something that cannot be said of his fellow wide forwards Savinho and Doku.
Savinho made a strong start to life at City, but his performances throughout the campaign followed a familiar pattern. His trickery and movement would open up defences and get the Etihad crowd on their feet, only for his shot or final pass to be lacking. The Brazilian was ranked the most wasteful forward in the Premier League last season, scoring just once despite having an expected goal (xG) tally of five. Savinho was City's top assist-provider, but his rivals in the team are able to both score and set up goals, meaning he should be one of the players to make way, at least from the starting line-up.
The 21-year-old will remain a lethal weapon to bring off the bench when some extra spark is needed and is a more than capable starter when Guardiola wants to rest others. It must also be remembered that Savinho only cost £21 million ($28m), so there is less institutional pressure to play him all the time.
Doku is in a similar category to Savinho. The Belgian can often frustrate as a starter and he has always been far from the most productive player, even when he was playing for Rennes in Ligue 1. But he is very dangerous off the bench, as he can tear into tired defences when a game is stretched.