It looks like we're in for another summer of big spending. With Jose Mourinho set to invest in fresh faces for his midfield and defence in order to try and bridge the gap on their rivals Manchester City, the 'Sky Blues' are expected to make their own purchases to hold United off.
According to the 'Daily Mail', it is about quality not quantity for Guardiola this summer, however, and it is in the midfield area where the City boss is expected to start his spending.
David Silva has been one of the players of the season for the league leaders, and recently made it onto the shortlist for PFA Player of the Year, however at 32 years old the Spaniard has reached his peak, and will need replacing sooner or later. The City coach has admitted such previously, stating: "Next season, David maybe will not play every game, that’s why the squad has to be big."
Furthermore Fernandinho and Yaya Toure are both in their 30s, meaning that there is a gap to fill in the City midfield.
Guardiola wants that gap to be filled by Thiago Alacantra. The Spanish midfielder played under Pep at Barcelona, and when the manager moved to Bayern Munich, he proceeded to bring Thiago with him. The midfielder is 27, and under contract at the German club until 2021, meaning that if City want him they may have to pay up to £50m.
Another player City are monitoring is Wilfried Zaha. Unlike Thiago, the Crystal Palace midfielder would come under the 'homegrown' quota, which is an attractive prospect for City given that they have already filled 14 of their 17 'overseas' quota, soon to be 16 when Oleksandr Zinchenko and Leroy Sane become 'senior' players next season. Zaha has impressed for Palace this season, however his previous failure at Manchester United may put City off him, and they are monitoring to see if his mentality is good enough to play at a top club.