According to Manchester Evening News reporter Simon Bajkowski, he discussed the differences between Maresca's coaching staff and Guardiola's setup, Floyd Samba's chances of breaking into the first team in the future, and alternative solutions when Haaland is absent in a recent fan Q&A.

Vladimir: Hi Simon. I want to ask about Maresca's coaching staff. Has anyone from inside the club mentioned the differences between Guardiola's coaching staff, like Pep Lijnders and Kolo Toure, and Maresca's staff? Perhaps the atmosphere in the team has changed, or there have been other shifts?

Simon Bajkowski: Thanks for the question. The inner workings of a coaching staff are really fascinating, and every staff operates differently.

For example, last season, Pep Guardiola was happy to let Pep Lijnders take charge of many training sessions, and Lijnders especially emphasized intensity when working with players—demanding more from the squad than anyone else in Maresca's coaching staff.

However, "high intensity" is also a term used to describe Maresca as he works to instill his philosophy in the players. Compared to Guardiola, Maresca is more hands-on, while his coaching staff members play more of a supporting role.

Maresca also ensures that multiple staff members focus on the younger players to ensure their continued development, with Danny Walker and Willy Caballero paying particular attention to the youth prospects.

Donnarumma also seems to be enjoying working with goalkeeper coach De Bernardin. This isn't criticism of his predecessor Mancisidor, who many regard as one of the finest goalkeeping coaches in the field. However, Donnarumma now does specific distribution drills during training to meet Maresca's requirements. Additionally, for City's number-one goalkeeper, having other Italians on the coaching staff to communicate with is an advantage. With so many new faces in the squad, the team's atmosphere has naturally changed, but the standards remain intact.

Can Floyd Samba genuinely become a key option for the first team next season? I mean, will his development path be like Foden's at that time—training with the first team and starting in cup matches? Given that he's currently behind Enzo Fernández and Elliot Anderson in the pecking order, does the club view him that way?

The way Floyd Samba has been performing is genuinely impressive. First, I should mention he's still very young—he won't turn 18 until next January. While he's one of the most exciting talents in his age group, Phil Foden's situation at that time was actually quite unique.

I believe Samba will continue with the first team this season. Following his performance against Norwich, he'll get more playing time. Then, the club will decide on the best arrangement for him next season. It's quite likely he'll stay with Maresca, but City may also think that a loan move, allowing him to play more regularly, would be better for his development.

Divin Mukasa is currently on loan at West Ham United, and in the club's evaluation of these young players, he's rated above Samba. There's also Echeverri, who is currently playing for Benfica. It's not the case that a player sent out on loan from City has no chance of making it into their first team.

Samba's advantage is that he's here. If he continues to make the most of the opportunities he gets, he'll receive increasingly more chances while remaining with the team—something the other players won't have.

After selling Marmoush and not signing a backup striker, is our depth behind Haaland still too thin? Especially if Haaland gets injured, will the squad have enough depth to support us across all four competitions? Beyond Haaland, where will our goals come from?

I feel that without Haaland, this team looks a bit thin. Part of the reason is that Semenyo, who was expected to be Haaland's alternative, is currently getting as much playing time as Haaland.

I believe if Foden hadn't been suspended, Maresca would have wanted to play Foden in the false nine role against Norwich. As for Samba, he wouldn't be directly deployed in that position in more important matches at this stage. Foden, Rayan Cherki, and Ndiaye have all been mentioned as potential alternatives in the false nine role when Haaland is unavailable.

And some tactical adjustments against Norwich, such as Aymeric Laporte pushed further back, also suggest Maresca is experimenting with different players and exploring different formations and positions these players could fill.

This will be a recurring theme throughout the season. Currently, City's squad appears somewhat thin. However, at the same time, many also don't believe Maresca's City can win those major trophies.

Each match changes people's perceptions. City can position itself to use Haaland as much as possible, or they can find other sources of goals when the team needs them.

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