da realbet： City's homegrown star needs to re-establish himself in Pep Guardiola's line-up, and Ilkay Gundogan's departure has left him a spot to fill
da 888： Manchester City had pretty much the perfect season last time around as they swept to the treble. They chased down Arsenal to retain the Premier League, beat their greatest rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final and then, after one of the toughest games of the season, eventually saw off Inter to win the Champions League, the trophy they craved the most.
The only negative point was the fact that Phil Foden, the club's most treasured player, had only a bit-part role in the most crucial stage of the season. Fortunately for City, Foden had his say in the final in Istanbul when Kevin De Bruyne hobbled off with a hamstring injury.
It was Foden's twisting movements which helped prise Inter open for Rodri's decisive goal and the boy from Stockport almost grabbed another himself late in the game. It was a fairy-tale moment for a player who has spent almost his entire life with City.
But this season, Foden must be involved more often. He is simply too good, and, as one of the biggest success stories of the City academy, too great a club asset to remain on the bench. The Pep Guardiola-era has been a moveable feast, however, and Foden's best route back to a regular place in the team is by turning into a midfielder. And after Ilkay Gundogan's departure, the time is ripe for him to make the change and bring his goalscoring threat with him.
Elsewhere, it will be fascinating to see how new signing Josko Gvardiol fits into the team after his £77 million ($98m) move from RB Leipzig and how Mateo Kovacic adapts to his new surroundings after switching from Chelsea.
Here, GOAL picks Man City's best starting XI for the new season, adopting a 3-2-4-1 formation…
(C)Getty ImagesGK: Ederson
There were times during last season when fans wondered whether Ederson was still worthy of being City's No.1. He was often beaten with the first proper shot he faced and he gifted a goal to Tottenham in the epic 4-2 win in January. He also faced much fiercer competition from Stefan Ortega than from his previous deputy, Zack Steffen.
However, the Brazilian gave one of the best performances of his City career in the Champions League final, showing great reflexes to thwart Lautaro Martinez, Robin Gosens and Romelu Lukaku in Istanbul. His display settled the argument and he should remain top choice between the posts.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesRCB: Kyle Walker
Rumours of Kyle Walker's demise turned out to be greatly exaggerated. After finding himself on the fringes of the team after the World Cup and being publicly criticised by Guardiola, the right-back fought his way back into the line up at a crucial stage of the campaign.
He proved once more that few players can match him when it comes to one-v-one defending, and when he hinted at wanting to leave and join Bayern Munich, City urged him to reconsider. Walker has played with more freedom in pre-season and looks like he could get forward a lot more in the coming campaign.
GettyCB: Ruben Dias
In an ever-changing back-line, Ruben Dias was the one constant for Guardiola last season, and after an inconsistent start, he came into his own around the new year.
Dias' physical strengths and leadership qualities make him one of the cornerstones of City's starting XI and he should remain one of the first names on the teamsheet this season.
Getty LCB: Josko Gvardiol
Gvardiol has all the attributes for Guardiola's new vision of defending and should take little time to adapt to the Premier League. Although he played as a centre-back for RB Leipzig, he loves to get forward, as he did for Croatia in the World Cup, and should be an asset in both penalty areas.
His primary task will be defending, but with a little communication with John Stones, the 21-year-old should be able to do his fair share of attacking down the left flank.