Pep Guardiola is already bracing his team for the new campaign up ahead. City breezed to the Premier League title, breaking the record for most consecutive wins and points acquired over a season.
Manchester City finished their campaign in style, scoring 100 points, thanks to a stoppage-time winner from Gabriel Jesus against Southampton. The Citizens were on top of the table for much of the campaign, with their swash-buckling attack claiming the scalp of every team that came in their way.
Guardiola masterminded his first Premier League title win, and now feels it is a more difficult job to defend their title. City are looking to add further members to their squad as Guardiola aims for a second successive Premier League triumph.
Recent reports have linked the club with Napoli midfielder Jorginho. The Premier League champions have had a £40m bid rejected by Napoli for the Italian international, who scored 4 goals and provided as many assists in 39 games in all competitions last season.
Napoli value Jorginho at £60m, and if the Cityzens fail to strike a deal with the Italian outfit, they will turn their attention towards Southampton’s Mario Lemina or Real Madrid’s Mateo Kovacic.
Ironically, Lemina, who has impressed at Southampton since arriving from Juventus last summer, is a target for Napoli if they lose Jorginho. However, City have monitored Lemina’s progress and would be comfortable switching their attention to the 24-year-old Gabon international.
Lemina made 20 appearances in the Premier League last season and played a key role in helping the Saints avoid relegation. He averaged 2.2 tackles and 1.7 interceptions per game last season. He is an engine in the middle of the park and would certainly prove to be a valuable asset to Guardiola’s side.
Kovacic is another viable option for City but the Croatia international is also on the radar of Manchester United. The Real Madrid midfielder is certain to bring with him a lot of experience and talent to the City side. Kovacic averaged 1.8 tackles and 0.2 interceptions per game last season.
Although he has been at Real Madrid since 2015, the midfielder has only sporadically featured for the Spanish giants. City would offer him the chance to feature on a more regular basis, which should help him to restart his career.
Certainly, Kovacic is a much bigger talent than Mario Lemina and would be a quality addition to Man City’s squad. Given an option, Pep must choose to sign Kovacic instead of Lemina.
