Manchester City has marked an aggregate of 24 players while Pep Guardiola has been in control. Manchester United may be about to sign a Championship player but Manchester City has not been interested in that market under Pep Guardiola. Their preference for recruiting from other leagues predates the current manager; you have to go back to the purchase of Patrick Roberts from Fulham in 2015 for the last time the Blues bought from the second tier of English football, and the 2010 arrival of Adam Johnson from Middlesbrough for the last time they brought in a first-team player from the league.

Guardiola, though, has followed the trend. City has signed 24 players to date since 2016 and not one of them has come from the Championship, although John Stones, Kyle Walker, and Riyad Mahrez have all come from Premier League clubs. The only club that has signed more players from in Guardiola’s time in Spain. Claudio Bravo, Nolito, Geronimo Rulli, and Pablo Mari all arrived in 2016 (with the latter two immediately loaned back out), and Aymeric Laporte followed in January 2018.

Behind La Liga and the Premier League, three groups are each in charge of two City signings; Leroy Sane and Ilkay Gundogan originated from the Bundesliga, Bernardo Silva and Benjamin Mendy from Monaco in Ligue 1, and Gabriel Jesus and Douglas Luiz from the Brazilian association. Monaco is the main club that City have purchased more than one player from. There are then ten countries to have given one City marking in the three-year time frame. Of those, Aleks Zinchenko (from Russia’s FC Ufa) and Ederson (from Portugal’s Benfica) are the main two to have included for the primary group.

City could include a 6th player from Spain in the event that they can see as an arrangement for Atletico’s Rodri this late spring, while there is additionally enthusiasm for a few Premier League players as the Blues hope to fortify their safeguard.