Speaking to Tribalfootball on behalf of William Hill Manchester City legend Paul Dickov can see no reason why the club shouldn’t bring home both the Premier and Champions League title once again. Having spent nearly a lifetime in football, he’s smart enough to add a little asterisk, though.
“To win the Premier League, to win the Champions League, to win anything in Europe is so, so difficult to do. You need the quality; the strength and depth, but you also need a little bit of luck as well. You look at the teams that win things or go far in especially cup competitions, there's that little bit of luck that you need, whether it be a refereeing decision, whether it be keeping everybody fit, or avoiding suspensions.”
Should they bring home the fifth Premier League title on the bounce it will be without the services of World Champion Julian Alvarez who surprisingly left The Etihad for Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid, but Dickov doesn’t think City desperately need to search for a replacement.
“It's so difficult to bring in a world-class player when they know that they're going to be up against Erling Haaland. These players will want to play every single week but if Erling's fit, he plays. Alvarez’ numbers over the last couple of years were incredible for somebody who wasn't always a starter. He loved the manager, he loved the fans, he loved the players, but he wanted to play and that's the problem,” says Dickov who points to the fact that Pep Guardiola usually knows what he’s doing.
“We've seen Phil Foden be successful, Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Oscar Bobb can play in that position. Jack Grealish could play in there as well as Savinho, so, if they do go and bring somebody in, it's going to be somebody along the lines of a younger player, like Jeremy Doku.
“What I know is that Manchester City's recruitment over the last years has been absolutely unbelievable. They're always forward-thinking, so I would expect one, maybe two, players to come in. But at the same time, it wouldn't surprise me if it didn't happen, because of the quality, the strength and depth that's already in the squad.”
Back in the squad from his loan spell at Sheffield United is James McAtee and Guardiola heaped a lot of praise on the young midfielder after playing 80 minutes in the Community Shield against Manchester United. He is a player that Paul Dickov has a lot of time for as well.
“James is a wonderful, wonderful young player. For somebody so young, his football intelligence is really high and I believe the two seasons at Sheffield United have done him a world of good. Getting a season in the Championship, then a tough season in the Premier League. A tough season like that can make you mentally stronger and make you bounce back even more.
“There's no doubt about his talent. He picks up some wonderful positions on the pitch. He's raised in tight areas, the spaces in between the full-backs and centre-halves, spaces between the midfielders and the centre-halves. He's very intelligent at getting into these spaces and he's a very, very good technician. He creates a lot of chances, he scores.
“Being away with the club on pre-season, getting minutes, playing at Wembley and then hearing the praise that the manager's given pre-season; his confidence will be very high. I've no doubt about it. I've watched James for a number of years, coming through the academy and he's always been one we've been looking out for and this could be his time.”