The Daily Telegraph analyzes Manchester City's summer transfer operations, noting that in the Enzo deal, Manchester City overcame Chelsea's resistance and secured the player after prolonged negotiations, completing the final piece of Manchester City's squad rebuild. The club is quite satisfied with this round of transfer activity.

At 11 p.m. on Monday night, Enzo's transfer to Manchester City was finalized.

This unusual saga, which has dragged on since early summer, has been filled with feigned ignorance, deliberate posturing, empty negotiation tactics, and time-wasting, with many twists along the way.

With just 24 hours left before the transfer window closed—Guardiola's first summer window after ten years at Manchester City—Enzo's transfer fee had soared to £135 million; Manchester City, after offering £104 million plus add-ons, was prepared to accept the deal.

But the next day, the transfer fee suddenly dropped by £10 million, and negotiations resumed. Manchester City reached an agreement, making Enzo one of the most expensive players in Premier League history, alongside Newcastle's Alexander Isak.

As negotiations neared completion, Manchester City finally announced the signing of their most expensive player in club history at 11:30 p.m., though the deal remained uncertain until the final moments.

After Monaco dramatically blocked Chelsea's move for midfielder Lamine Camara as a replacement on deadline day, Chelsea could have walked away in the final minutes and cancelled the Enzo transfer. Some viewed Monaco's action as unprofessional.

However, Chelsea chose to honor its commitment to Manchester City and Enzo, completing the transfer. This was quite rare, given the considerable friction between the two clubs in recent months.

Chelsea had previously set a deadline of August 14 at 5 p.m., demanding other clubs meet their psychological asking price of £120 million, and stated they would not accept offers after that time. However, this did not force Manchester City to act hastily, as several Manchester City sales that would raise funds had not yet materialized.

Taking such a hard line with 17 days remaining in the transfer window was quite unusual. Although Chelsea ultimately received an extra £5 million from Manchester City, the cost of that gamble was failing to recruit a replacement player, and this tactic ultimately backfired.

Maresca's Determination, Manchester City's Initial Ambiguity

In fact, Chelsea was not alone in employing negotiation tactics. In late May, Manchester City publicly denied all rumors of pursuing Enzo, despite it being clear that Enzo Maresca, who would replace Guardiola, was keen to bring his former protégé to Manchester. The reasoning behind this remains unclear, possibly related to a sensitive past: Manchester City approached Maresca while he was still employed by Chelsea, and the London club even pursued legal action over it. Did Manchester City wish to avoid further escalating the conflict?

In late June, Manchester City reached a £17 million compensation agreement with Chelsea, and Maresca himself paid an undisclosed sum to his former club. He left abruptly in January, and Chelsea accused him of damaging the team's season.

Enzo was one of several South American players at Stamford Bridge who had supported Maresca. The Argentine had tried to leave in April, when he was close to Real Madrid. Chelsea temporarily suspended him from the squad, and he himself had clearly stated his desire to leave.

In early July, Real Madrid unusually issued a statement saying they had no intention of signing Enzo. That same day, the player, with the Argentina squad, fought hard to defeat Cape Verde and reach the Copa America Round of 16; at that point, he learned that Maresca was determined to bring him to Manchester City.

With Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Stones, Aké, and Akanji all departing this summer, Maresca desperately needed a mentally strong midfielder with big-game experience who understood his tactical philosophy, and thus strongly pushed for Enzo's acquisition.

"To be honest, both sides really wanted to make this transfer happen, and my situation at Chelsea was not easy," Enzo said in his first interview with Manchester City's official website on Wednesday. "But I knew Maresca was also making great efforts, constantly communicating with the club, and I'm grateful for that. The last few days were difficult, but I'm here now and very happy. From day one they reached out to me, I had no doubts whatsoever."

Nearly £400 Million in Sale Revenue Supports Midfield Reconstruction

Enzo is the final piece of Manchester City's squad rebuild. The club believes that after bringing in midfielders Elliott Anderson and Ayoub Boudaoui, plus Okafor, the team's strength has improved significantly compared to the start of Guardiola's final season.

Including the signings of Guehi and Semenyo in early January, Manchester City's total investment this year approached £540 million, providing Maresca with all the conditions needed to quickly adapt as the new manager.

After Tottenham striker Marmoush, who was on a loan-to-buy deal, makes a permanent transfer next summer for £60 million, Manchester City's sale revenue will approach £400 million. Adding the sale of Oscar Bobb for £27 million to Fulham in January, the team's net investment is estimated to be around £133 million.

Manchester City acknowledged that in summer 2024, they made a mistake by delaying squad reinforcements following their treble-winning, four consecutive title-winning season.

Even after the rebuild began the following year, there were still many errors, but it should be noted that Manchester City largely recovered costs after transferring players who did not meet the club's high standards, and some deals even generated profits.

In deals involving Marmoush, Reijnders (sold for £52 million to a Saudi club), and Nico González (transferred to Newcastle for £50 million), Manchester City largely recouped their initial acquisition costs; Manchester City even made a net profit of £13 million from selling English goalkeeper to Leeds United.

The most surprising deal was the sale of Brazilian winger Savio to Tottenham, with a base transfer fee of £75 million, potentially rising to £85 million. This player initially cost approximately £33 million when transferred from Troyes, scoring only two goals in two seasons, yet Manchester City will pocket a £52 million profit on him.

Tottenham had been interested in recruiting Savio last summer. When Manchester City saw Tottenham spend £85 million on Matheus Fernandes and £100 million on Sandro Tonali, combined with general market inflation in transfer fees, they were confident they could demand a high price and take a very firm stance.

Similarly, Manchester City refused to be forced into selling Rodri at a discount. Barcelona initially made an insulting offer of £45 million, which Manchester City immediately rejected. Negotiations only began when Barcelona submitted a serious bid.

Nevertheless, Manchester City paid substantial transfer fees for Enzo, Anderson (acquired from Nottingham Forest for £116 million), and the 18-year-old Boudaoui. Lille initially wanted Boudaoui to remain on loan for another season, but Manchester City refused. This £86 million signing is viewed as Rodri's long-term successor in the number six position, and the club hopes he will play a significant role this season; Anderson is positioned more as a number eight.

Manchester City has adequate personnel in most positions, but if Haaland suffers an injury, there would be a gap at the natural center-forward position, at which point Semenyo would temporarily fill in as the number nine.

The first summer window following Guardiola's departure has been challenging, but Manchester City is quite satisfied with this round of transfer operations. The current challenge for the new players and new manager is filling the significant void left by the departure of several star players.

Diterjemahkan oleh AI.

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