Heading into their season opener against Wolves on Saturday, expectations for Manchester City’s season are in a bit of a weird place. The media’s optimism around Liverpool has dulled much talk of a title race, and so City are going under the radar as contenders despite the club’s dominance in recent years. Last season was a low point for Pep Guardiola’s team, dropping to third for the first time since his debut season in 2016/17. What will the Sky Blues need to do in order to place themselves back at the top of the Premier League?
We’ve done some data collection… 📊
— mcfc lads (@mcfc_lads) August 13, 2025
Not one of 27 (TWENTY SEVEN) major pundits and YouTubers have predicted Manchester City to win the Premier League this season. 🤔 pic.twitter.com/wKC91z0vHq
Avoid injuries
A massive part of City’s collapse last season was a result of an injury crisis that hit the club in early November, leaving the club with almost no options at the back. Having already lost Ballon d’Or winner Rodri earlier in the year, City’s defense saw numerous injuries occur all at once. At the height of this crisis, against Brighton, their starting backline consisted of Rico Lewis, Kyle Walker, Jahmai Simpson-Pusey and Joško Gvardiol. The results of this crisis bled throughout the season, as the entire squad lost confidence and opposition teams smelled blood against a City team as vulnerable as they have ever been under Guardiola. If City are to be successful this year, they must avoid a repetition of last year's injury problems. This will mean managing key players’ minutes throughout the season to ensure they are fit for key matches. Rodri and Gvardiol are two players who will be at the centre of this rotation, with the former still only just back from his ACL and reportedly 2 months from returning to peak fitness, and the latter coming off of a season where he played a gargantuan 4640 minutes in all competitions (per Transfermarkt). City will need to ensure these players do not succumb to long term injuries due to overplaying if they are to compete for the title this year.
Rodri still has ‘at least two more months’ before he will be back at his best version, should further injuries not slow down the recovery process.
— City Xtra (@City_Xtra) August 13, 2025
[via @GuillemBalague]
Get the best out of Haaland
Erling Haaland scored 22 league goals last season despite a six week injury during the run-in, and this was still considered a massively underwhelming season for the Norwegian superstar. If Haaland can return to the form that saw him break the single season goals record in the Premier League, City will be well within contention for the title. But in order to manage this, City will need to create better chances for the striker more consistently, and will need to provide threat from elsewhere so defences don’t have the luxury of only focusing on Haaland. If Phil Foden can return to his Player of the Season winning form two seasons ago, this will surely provide a massive boost both to the team and to Haaland. Midfield signing Tijjani Reijnders has already shown a pension for getting forward, scoring a brace in City’s preseason fixture against Palermo, and his forward thinking play-style will be a massive asset in allowing City to break quickly. Rayan Aït-Nouri will provide some much needed threat from out wide, and will hope to link up well with Jérémy Doku to create a devastating left-sided attack. Maverick attacking midfielder Rayan Cherki will be key in replacing the game-breaking ability of Kevin De Bruyne and will be hoping to make his £30m fee look like the steal of the summer.
Find balance in the midfield
One of the biggest difficulties City dealt with last year was their inability to cope without Rodri in the centre of the pitch. While Rodri is back, his fitness must be managed and so this is still a problem the club will need to cope with at points during this season. January signing Nico González is joined by Serie A midfielder of the season Tijjani Reijnders as the clubs recent midfield reinforcements. While the former has yet to gain the full trust of Guardiola, his physical profile will surely provide him with opportunities this season. Reijnders on the other hand has already massively impressed the club across his first few months at the club, with the feeling not only that he will form an imperious partnership with Rodri, but that he will also allow City’s older midfielders in Gündoğan and Kovaçić to flourish with his added energy and physicality. If minutes and profiles can be managed correctly, there is every chance that City’s midfield resumes its status as one of, if not outright the, best in the world.
Settle the defense
Due to the injury crisis, City’s defence became one of the biggest talking points about the club. No reinforcements have been brought in during the summer, with Abdukodir Khusanov the only new player from the beginning of last season following Vitor Reis’s loan move to Girona. The key hope will be that players like John Stones and Nathan Aké can avoid the injury problems that plagued them last year. Gvardiol and Dias ended last season strongly, with the former finally finding himself in his natural position following 18 months at left back. Khusanov also impressed during his run in the team, particularly with his pace which will surely help the club to recover from the regression and subsequent sale of Kyle Walker. On the left, Aït-Nouri represents the first true left back the club have employed since Benjamin Mendy, and will be a massive boost to the team's attacking structure. Defence wins titles, and as long as City can avoid the problems of last year, theirs could pose problems even to Liverpool’s mega-money forward line.
Conclusion - regaining their status
Arguably the biggest effect that City’s collapse last season has had is the destruction of their status as the most feared club in the country. That reputation saw them through tough periods in the past, including their title-winning run during 2023/24, when they were far from their best at times. The belief it instilled in the squad lead to a sense of inevitability, which all great sports teams have; that they will find a way to get over the line no matter what. If City recover that, they can easily go on a run that will not just see them reclaim their title, but in doing so put down a marker for the rest of English football. Recovery here, in the face of Liverpool’s prospective dominance, could propel City to long term success not seen in England since Alex Ferguson left Manchester United.
