Manchester City preview: Five key questions heading into 2026-27 season

SaveSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkManchester City Manager Enzo Maresca looks on during the English FA Community Shield football match between Arsenal and Manchester City on August 16 [AFP]By Al Jazeera Staff and ReutersPublished On 22 Aug 202622 Aug 2026For the first ⁠time in a decade, Manchester ⁠City head into a season without manager Pep Guardiola on the touchline.The Spaniard’s departure closes the most successful chapter in the club’s history, a period that delivered six Premier League titles, a Champions League crown and ⁠transformed City into the dominant force in English football.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4PSG forced to move opening league match as heatwave in France damages pitchlist 2 of 4Premier League form guide: Ranking the title contenders for 2026-27 seasonlist 3 of 4Diego Maradona’s doctors missed renal red flag, Argentinian court toldlist 4 of 4Musiala collapses for Bayern again as ‘neurological disorder’ diagnosedend of listHis successor, Enzo Maresca, inherits a squad led by Norway striker Erling Haaland and packed with elite talent, but faces the formidable challenge of following a legendary manager.As City kick off their league campaign at home to Bournemouth on Sunday, here are the five biggest questions for the new season.How does Maresca succeed Guardiola?Maresca inherits a club that has been shaped entirely around one manager’s philosophy for a decade. Pundits have already drawn comparisons to Manchester United’s unravelling after Sir Alex Ferguson left in 2013.Maresca was Guardiola’s assistant during the treble season and has since built his own reputation at Leicester and Chelsea, so his appointment is not a total leap of faith.The attraction of Maresca is continuity – City have ‌not sought a radical departure from Guardiola’s football philosophy.The expectation is that City will look familiar in possession, but Maresca must also establish his own identity quickly.He’s also known for occasionally falling out with players and staff, which adds a layer of risk to a job that already involves managing enormous expectations with a squad that finished as runners-up last season.While City’s hierarchy and supporters expect an immediate title challenge, Maresca’s first competitive game in charge was a disaster as City were blown away 3-0 by Arsenal in the Community Shield last Sunday. How do City replace Rodri?Rodri has long been City’s heartbeat in midfield with his passing, positioning and defensive intelligence. He helped ⁠propel Spain to this year’s World Cup title, earning the tournament’s Golden Ball. So his move to Barcelona comes as a huge blow.City have strengthened midfield by ⁠signing England midfielder Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest for a reported £116m ($153m), adding energy, ball-winning ability and depth to the centre of the pitch. But Anderson is more of a progressive, box-to-box profile than a like-for-like replacement.City are expected to make a move for the 18-year-old midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi from Lille, but he is a very raw youngster.Ultimately, there is probably no better holding midfielder in world football than Rodri and he is irreplaceable – City may have to try to spread his job across younger, promising players and hope it works.Martin Odegaard of Arsenal takes a shot while under pressure from Elliot Anderson of City during the 2026 FA Community Shield [File: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images]Can City fix their game-management issues?City’s title challenge unraveled last season partly through basic game management – they dropped 17 points from winning positions.Maresca’s relative pragmatism may help address this problem.But with John Stones, Bernardo Silva and Nathan Ake all departing this summer, whether the incoming personnel actually suit a more controlled approach is one of the more concrete tactical questions of the season.Is Haaland’s firepower alone enough for a genuine title challenge?Haaland remains City’s central attacking threat, and few defences in the league can live with him when City are functioning.But a title challenge built primarily around one striker has proven fragile before, including for City themselves last season.Omar Marmoush is a decent player but is nowhere near Haaland’s level, so Maresca needs to find a way to make City’s attack becomes more varied. Will World Cup hangover complicate an already unsettled squad?City sent a significant portion of their squad deep into the World Cup, including Haaland and Doku, with six first-team players still involved in the tournament’s final week. This leaves Maresca with a smaller-than-ideal group for the opening weeks of preseason, on top of an already unsettled transfer window.City certainly looked flat and blunt in the Community Shield compared with a fresher, sharper Arsenal.“I don’t know if it was physical condition, we had many players at the World Cup,” Maresca said.“After the first goal the reaction was very good, but after the second goal it was more complicated.”