The Squad planning thread

It's quite clear we need to ship out something like 5 to 10 players.

Seems we are waiting for the CWC to finish before telling the players.

Seems a bit harsh.
 
CΛL said:
Seems like we’ve gotten ourselves into a bit of a mess really, if we’re to go with a wingbacks, that leaves 7 for 2 starting spots.

Stones has just said he doesn’t want to leave, Akanji has 2 years left, the two new boys won’t be expecting to leave.

Ake is our only other left footer so he’ll get games at LCB with Gvardiol, and Dias can play there.

But then we have 5 for RCB. Which just seems daft.

We’ll have at least 3 very unhappy players unless a few of them get injured, which tbf is quite likely. One or two won’t be registered in the champions league.
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If we don't get a right back in I can see us playing a back 3 that can shift to a back four similar to the treble season but with the left wing back dropping into the 4 rather than a DM becoming a CB.

---------------------Akanji/Khusanov/Reis --------- Dias/Stones-----------Gvardiol/Ake-------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nunes/Savnino------------------------Rodri/Nico-----------------Reijnders/Gundogan------------Ait-Nori/Oreily
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------Foden/Bernardo-----------------------------------------Cherki/Marmoush/Doku--------------------
--------------------------------------------------------Haaland-----------------------------------------------

Didn't watch at 2am the other night but it was suggested that it was closer to a back 3 than Khusanov at RB. Heard it suggested he was at rb though. There's quite a lot of flexibility there in that it could very easily shift between 433, 4231, 352, 343 in match and traditional wingers or tucked in AMs swap out of the line up depending on the circumstance.
 
Gareth Barry Conlon said:
It's quite clear we need to ship out something like 5 to 10 players.

Seems we are waiting for the CWC to finish before telling the players.

Seems a bit harsh.
Click to expand...
Why? Football is a business these days - I lost count of the number of times, in 32 years working for a multi national company, we were told to wait at our desks for the shoulder tap.
They're paid employees, once the CWC is over there's still plenty of time in the window for them to find somewhere else to play.
You'd rather we said "oh btw after this you're surplus to requirements" - not exactly a pep talk that ;)
 
Gareth Barry Conlon said:
It's quite clear we need to ship out something like 5 to 10 players.

Seems we are waiting for the CWC to finish before telling the players.

Seems a bit harsh.
Click to expand...
We need 6 to leave including Phillips and Walker. More might leave if you include Grealish and McAtee but they don’t need to.So 4 from the CWC squad plus Kovacic.
I think we are still making decisions on some especially which if any younger players to loan from Echeverri, Reis, Khusonov possibly Bobb too.
Just posted elsewhere think it’s 4 from Gundogan, Kovacic, Akanji ,Echeverri, Reis and Khusonov.
 
mdj0520 said:
If we don't get a right back in I can see us playing a back 3 that can shift to a back four similar to the treble season but with the left wing back dropping into the 4 rather than a DM becoming a CB.

---------------------Akanji/Khusanov/Reis --------- Dias/Stones-----------Gvardiol/Ake-------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nunes/Savnino------------------------Rodri/Nico-----------------Reijnders/Gundogan------------Ait-Nori/Oreily
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------Foden/Bernardo-----------------------------------------Cherki/Marmoush/Doku--------------------
--------------------------------------------------------Haaland-----------------------------------------------

Didn't watch at 2am the other night but it was suggested that it was closer to a back 3 than Khusanov at RB. Heard it suggested he was at rb though. There's quite a lot of flexibility there in that it could very easily shift between 433, 4231, 352, 343 in match and traditional wingers or tucked in AMs swap out of the line up depending on the circumstance.
Click to expand...
We aren't playing a back 3
 
K-Bo said:
Stones for example, will probably get in the england team whether he plays next year or not.

Also I don't think club and pep might not be on same page about every player, club might want gundo out for example. But if he refuses to go, he can probably feel that in the end pep will give him minutes...

Grealish is in a weak position. Kovacic will play for croatia if he gets 0 minutes next season, ditto akanji and switzerland.

I think we'll get stuck with a lot of these guys, and Echeverri, Reis, Khusanov and Maybe Bobb will go out on loan to compensate.
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This is the ensuing battle. Guardiola wanting to remain loyal to his elderly, injury ridden, tried & tested treble winners, but the club wishing to dispense with their services & look to the future.

With KDB failing to get an extension, & most of Pep's backroom staff not having their contracts renewed, my feeling is the club are already demonstrating our immediate future is being taken out of Guardiola's hands.

I seriously don't see the sense in Echeverri, Bobb, Reis & Khusanov etc who are City’s future, being loaned out so we can eek a final tune out of Stones, Gundog, Kovacic & Grealish etc.

I get the feeling the club would rather take a step back with the players who'll form the foundation in 2025/26, so we can take massive leaps forward from 2026/27 onwards.

Pep tried it his way & essentially ran our ageing squad into the ground, & did little by way of succession planning. You could see how irked Khaldoon was about this.

My guess & my wish is that Manchester City move on to the future, & say thank you & goodbye to our past.
 
The good side of having such a large squad is
We will not have proper rest preseason so playing time of players will be managed.
No need to worry about injury of players.
Compitition will raise the standards of players.
We have far too good harmony among players so no need to worry about that side. Who disturbs the harmony will go next season.

PLayers are not willing to go so let them stay. This is a world cup year and its in the hand of players.
3/4 players have one year left in their contract so will be making way for younger ones next season. Its easier that way.
 
It is pretty obvious what the plan is/was - recruit the players we need early (January/June), and then gradually remove the players who are no longer in the plans. Anyone thinking we are in a mess seems to be ignoring this. Had we done things the opposite way, we would absolutely be in a worse position.
 
oldius said:
It is pretty obvious what the plan is/was - recruit the players we need early (January/June), and then gradually remove the players who are no longer in the plans. Anyone thinking we are in a mess seems to be ignoring this. Had we done things the opposite way, we would absolutely be in a worse position.
Click to expand...

Agree, another point will be most other clubs dont want to do their business until the 1st July onwards.
 
blueparrot said:
We need 6 to leave including Phillips and Walker. More might leave if you include Grealish and McAtee but they don’t need to.So 4 from the CWC squad plus Kovacic.
I think we are still making decisions on some especially which if any younger players to loan from Echeverri, Reis, Khusonov possibly Bobb too.
Just posted elsewhere think it’s 4 from Gundogan, Kovacic, Akanji ,Echeverri, Reis and Khusonov.
Click to expand...
They were not included in the CWC squad because they have no future at City, Grealish definitely hasn't. Ideally the club want him sold, not loaned. We may send McAtee out on loan or sell, but if we sell we need to insert a buy back and sell on clause that's in our best interests.
 
himalayan_blues said:
Pep rates everyone and everyone are happy to stay.
Interesting.....
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Viana is the guy now though and not Txiki? Players need to go and Viana has no attachment to the players? He is now tasked with building if possible the next centurion team and if he follows his ways from Sporting Lisbon has no problem culling players he feels dont benefit any longer or need replaced.
 
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