The early weeks of the transfer window are often quiet during major tournament summers and the first seven days of this one have passed by with little to distract from the events in Germany.
It is three years since a tournament occupied the consciousness during the summer, thanks to the winter 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and the quality and drama of the football on show has been more than enough to keep people entertained.
But these days the club game doesn’t plays second fiddle for long and gradually deals are taking shape. Manchester United are pushing for Jarrad Branthwaite and Aston Villa for Ian Maatsen. The deal to take Maatsen to Villa Park stands out because he is currently with the Netherlands squad at Euro 2024.
A lot of players will try to put thoughts around their club futures to the back of their heads during a major tournament, which is why the window can take more time than usual to get going. The question at Manchester City is when it will fire into life, if it does at all.
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The Manchester City team is playing in the FA Youth Cup Final match against Leeds United at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, on May 10, 2024. (Photo by MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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Kalvin Phillips
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The previous two summer windows at the Etihad have been reasonably busy. In 2022 Erling Haaland, Kalvin Phillips, Manuel Akanji, Sergio Gomez and Stefan Ortega signed, while last year it was Josko Gvardiol, Matheus Nunes, Jeremy Doku and Mateo Kovacic who joined.
But two years ago Jack Grealish was the only first-team signing, with the deal to bring Julian Alvarez in completed in the January. It’s possible that 2024 will be more 2021 than the last two summers.
Those windows saw Pep Guardiola refresh his squad and if there is a key area this summer it is in holding midfield, with a deputy for Rodri vital with Phillips likely to leave. That could be a theme of the window.
Ederson could yet depart if he pushes for a move to Saudi Arabia and that would force City into the market to sign another goalkeeper. Then there is the midfield situation, with the futures of Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne in the spotlight.
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Both are clearly closer to the end of their City careers than the start and there is a sense that starting the task of replacing them should begin sooner rather than later. A move for Lucas Paqueta is now clearly off the table but Newcastle midfielder Bruno Guimaraes continues to be linked.
Right now, however, it looks unlikely any club will come in with a £50m offer for Bernardo, while De Bruyne’s future mostly hinges on what he wants to do. Is he ready to step away from European football or does he believe he has another season in him? If it’s the latter then he is likely to remain at the Etihad.
That scenario could yet see the entire summer drift by relatively quietly at City. There is a chance Guardiola heads into next season with a very similar squad to the one that has just won a fourth successive Premier League title.
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