Man City transfer news: Guardiola confirms January plans

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 19 May 2021 15:43 BST
• 2 min read

Man City manager Pep Guardiola has confirmed that the club will not be looking to sign anyone in the January transfer window.

Having started the season slowly, the Premier League runners-up are currently enjoying a rich vein of form, winning each of their last five games to move up to second in the table just three points adrift of Man Utd with a game in hand.

Due to the fitness issues of Sergio Aguero in particular, who has only started two games in the league in 2020/21 due to injuries and coronavirus isolation, City were rumoured to be in the market for a new centre-forward.

Man City have recently been linked with the likes of Erling Haaland and Romelu Lukaku, but it seems like transfers of this magnitude won’t happen until the summer.

“We will not sign any deal during the winter transfer market. We did not discuss this, but we will end the season with the players that we have now,” Guardiola told beIN Sports.

Aguero, Gabriel Jesus, and Ferran Torres have all had more than one game in the centre-forward position this season, and Guardiola concedes that the team have had to adapt due to the absences they have had in this area.

“This is one of our ways,” he said, with regards to altering how Man City play in the final third.

“There were matches where we needed an attacker but at that time two of them were injured. One had been injured for a long time – Sergio Aguero. The other two had the coronavirus.

“That’s why we sometimes play in this way, other times we are forced to do that because of a pressing need.

“It’s an alternative plan, which we can rely on given the talents we have in the various positions.”

Man City take on Aston Villa in the Premier League on Wednesday evening.