Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola insists he’ll buy “one or two” players this summer rather than splurge on another complete squad overhaul at the end of the season.
City have spent just shy of £450m on new players since Guardiola took over the reins at the Etihad Stadium in 2016.
However, while the club have splashed the cash in recent windows to overhaul an ageing squad, Guardiola insists his dealings this summer will be far “cheaper” than in recent years.
“Of course we buy a lot of players and they have helped us a lot and next summer is to buy one or two players more. So our market in the summer will be cheaper,” Guardiola is quoted as saying by the Daily Telegraph after City’s 3-0 win over Arsenal on Thursday night.
Guardiola suggested that City spent heavily in his opening 18 months at the Etihad helm in order to accelerate the club’s plan of becoming the best team in Europe.
“If you want to compete at a high level of competitions you need the good players, and the good players make good managers, good clubs,” he added.
“At Manchester City, we can achieve what we have done in maybe 20 years but they try to do it a bit quicker to reduce the gap and to be there in every season trying to compete.
“Being in the last five seasons the only team in England every single season in the Champions League, you need to do be best. But all the teams in England and Spain as well the big clubs always spend and we have to focus on what we have to do.”
City will look to take another big step towards the title when they host Chelsea on Sunday.
