Man City start new era - but how might Guardiola's side look?

Just 24 days on from their last Premier League game of the 2024-25 season, Manchester City will return to competitive action as they begin their Club World Cup campaign in the United States.

Pep Guardiola's side endured a miserable time last term but chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said this tournament will mark the start of a new season, rather than a continuation of the previous one.

Though a quick turnaround, City will be pleased to jump back on to the relentless footballing treadmill with the opportunity of defending the global crown they won two years ago in Saudi Arabia.

Guardiola said: "The World Cup is an incredible opportunity to understand we come here all together, to show who we are in the best way, playing the sport we love.

"Supporters of both sides sharing different continents and places - this is what we should be all around the world. Hopefully this World Cup can help people understand that."

The tournament has since been expanded to 32 teams, with Fifa president Gianni Infantino declaring a "new era" for football - and the very same can be said about this City side.

With serious competition for places now, how will Guardiola's men line up this season and whose place is in danger?

City have set their stall out by spending more than £100m to bolster their squad for the tournament and will be heavy favourites against Moroccan champions Wydad AC in Philadelphia.

Guardiola's side fell below their high standards last term, failing to win a major trophy for the first time in eight years after finishing third in the league, being knocked out early in the Champions League and beaten in the FA Cup final by Crystal Palace.

The Spaniard let go of club legend Kevin de Bruyne and has freshened up his midfield with the signings of £43m box-to-box Dutchman Tijjani Reijnders from AC Milan and Lyon's French maverick Rayan Cherki for £30.45m.

Ballon d'Or winner Rodri and Oscar Bobb are now back and available - after missing most of last season with injury - while £31m signing from Wolves, Rayan Ait-Nouri, will allow City to operate with a specialist left-back for the first time since the departure of Benjamin Mendy.

"I'm really happy that we were able to bring in such quality reinforcements," said Brazil winger Savinho. "They're training really well and integrating into a group that is really settled so that is good to see.

"I'm looking forward to getting on to the pitch with them."

With Nico Gonzalez, Omar Marmoush, Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov joining for £200m in January and 2024 acquisition from River Plate, Claudio Echeverri, also now at the club, Guardiola has a multitude of options with a total of nine arrivals since January.

It shows Man City mean serious business but does leave plenty of questions about the squad - with Guardiola claiming he needed a smaller one.

Khusanov, Savinho, James McAtee, Echeverri, Rico Lewis and Jack Grealish all missed out on matchday squads towards the end of last season and, with 34 players listed in their first-team squad, departures are inevitable.

City's 27-man Club World Cup squad does not include Kyle Walker, Kalvin Phillips and Grealish, with all three set for the exit - if deals can be agreed.

But, with Guardiola adamant he did not "want to have 24, 25, 26 players when everyone is fit" in his squad, there remain some big decisions to be made.

One player who confirmed he will stay is midfielder Bernardo Silva, who has been appointed captain.

Silva, who enters the final year of his contract, said: "I have had options in the past and this year - like last year - my option is to stay at Man City."

Pick your Man City starting XI from the squad listed below.

Guardiola has reshaped his backroom staff too, with coaches Juanma Lillo and Inigo Dominguez departing.

During their training sessions at Lynn University in Florida, City were looking sharp - crisply passing balls around in triangles and drilling first-time finishes into the mini nets.

New assistant coach Pep Lijnders was laying down the law as he led training, screaming for "movement", "quality" and "speed" in their play.

The experienced Dutchman has been brought in to work alongside Guardiola after a successful period as assistant to Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, where he helped the Reds win the Premier League and Champions League.

"We had a conversation with Jurgen but not about Pep," said Guardiola. "It was a long conversation. I suggested I was thinking about Pep and he gave me his high opinion.

"I asked permission from Jurgen of course, I didn't want to interfere. I asked if it would be a problem and he said 'absolutely not'. After one or two days we decided yes."

Former defender, and City youth team coach, Kolo Toure has also been drafted in to help out during the tournament and was assisting during the warm-up, as well as laying out bibs and balls.

Last season was derailed by a number of injuries to key players, the biggest being a serious knee injury suffered by midfielder Rodri early in the campaign.

But he returned to full training at the back end of last term and played the last six minutes in the final home game against Bournemouth.

"When you see Rodri, he won the Ballon d'Or here," said Frenchman Cherki. "It's clear that with Manchester City, it's possible and I am here for this."

The 28-year-old's influence on the team cannot be understated, the glue that holds the whole project together, and they will certainly be strengthened by his return to the first team.

It remains to be seen whether the new boys will be thrown in straight away, but the big names like Erling Haaland, Ruben Dias and Silva are all involved and City's powerful squad makes them one of the favourites to lift the trophy.

Their placing in Group G may well determine how far they go in this tournament, and is likely to come down to the third game against Juventus on 26 June in Orlando.

Finish second and it is likely to be a monumental last-16 meeting against Real Madrid in the scorching heat of Miami - finish top, and the route opens up for a run to the latter stages in New York.