Man City are set to avoid repeat of January transfer window drama
Manchester City caused a stir last year in the January transfer window but this one has been significantly quieter
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola talks to Erling Haaland after the Premier League match between Manchester United and Manchester City
(Image: 2023 Getty Images)
A year ago, Manchester City looked a bit frazzled.
Their form since the World Cup had been patchy, including arguably the worst performance of the Pep Guardiola era in the Carabao Cup defeat at Southampton. What was expected to be a quiet January transfer window ended with one of their best players from previous seasons sent packing to Bayern Munich as Joao Cancelo was pushed out before his fallout with the manager got any more destructive; a young lad named Rico Lewis was mentioned inside City as an adequate replacement for the experienced international Cancelo.
You don’t have to have seen the five trophies to know what happened over the rest of 2023 and January 2024 has been much more enjoyable for everyone at the Etihad. Four straight wins have made it eight in a row in all competitions and a warm-weather break in the middle of the month has charged respective batteries ahead of their attempt to defend their Treble.
Without going to the market to improve the first-team squad, it feels like City have added to the group through players returning from injuries. Kevin De Bruyne had missed 28 games when he returned against Huddersfield in January, and his assist there was topped by a goal and assist to beat Newcastle; Erling Haaland had missed the last 10 matches before his appearance off the bench against Burnley at the end of the month; John Stones is fit again after being plagued with injuries this season.
Guardiola has persisted with a small squad and while that has been tested by injuries and suspensions at times this season, but that has allowed others to step up. Micah Hamilton scored a wonderful goal on debut at Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League, Mateo Kovacic is settling in after his summer move, while Oscar Bobb has impressed with every opportunity and his goal against Newcastle elevated his status in the squad.
With a trio of world-class stars coming back into contention, City’s squad has never seemed bigger in this campaign. Injuries may still dictate how much success can be had at the end of the season, but a club that like to get all of their transfer business done in the summer window have seen no need to strength in January.
The one purchase has been one for the future, with 19-year-old Argentine midfielder Claudio Echeverri signing from River Plate for an initial £12.5m but remaining at his former club for at least the rest of the calendar year. Having found gold one at River with Julian Alvarez, the Blues think they may have another prized asset on their hands.
The most serious departure has been Kalvin Phillips on loan, although his lack of game time at City means it is little loss just as it was expected as soon as he spoke out in October about needing more minutes to play. Only starting one of the three matches Rodri was suspended in, a Carabao Cup game at Newcastle, was the final nail in the coffin for Phillips’s hopes at the Etihad.
City have earned a chunky loan fee out of West Ham to take him for the rest of the season, and will also earn a few million from a sell-on clause inserted into the deal taking Morgan Rogers to Middlesbrough this summer; that has been activated following Aston Villa coming in to sign Rogers this month. It wouldn’t be a City transfer window without some sell-on clause somewhere being activated to earn them a bit of extra money.
As far as the first team goes though, welcoming back De Bruyne, Stones and Haaland to a team well-placed in all competitions feels like just the impetus they need.
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