As Paris Saint-Germain cut through a creaking City defence – left exposed by a midfield that was unable to stem the tide in the biblical rain – it suddenly felt like a season too far for some of the men in that abomination of an away kit.
These are great players – some of the best to ever grace the Premier League – but Guardiola’s famed eye for detail seems to have lost focus in allowing them all to grow old together.
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Read MoreOmar Marmoush – a flexible, technically brilliant forward who has impressed in the Bundesliga – is an especially exciting addition, capable of transforming City’s attack.
There were targets ready to go, recruitment ideas circulating and an acknowledgement that succession plans for their biggest stars needed to be drawn up.
It can not be sentimentality that was the source of his hesitation. Guardiola is utterly ruthless at times – just ask Joao Cancelo, shoved into exile when nearly at the peak of his powers in 2023.
De Bruyne is still an elite player but he needs support (Photo: Getty)Can the same be said of what has transpired over the last 12 months? Kyle Walker has started the departure of the old guard with his move to Milan but it says a lot that his exit was player-led – even though the evidence of his decline was clear.
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Read MoreBelatedly City seem to have recognised that, which explains why they are still scouring the transfer market for a number six able to replace and complement the much-missed Rodri.
Faced with the dilemma of replacing Kylian Mbappe this summer, they have injected energy and hunger into a group in danger of falling flat.
Only Everton, West Ham and Fulham have fielded teams with a higher average age than Guardiola has this season, which perhaps hints at the issues that are unfolding at the Etihad. New blood is required to keep the sky blue trophy-winning machine pumping.
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