Ake walks out the door, and City's left side looks bare
Nathan Ake has left Manchester City. The Dutchman completed his permanent move to Fenerbahce on Saturday, July 4, for a fee reported to be under €12m of his market value (5) (10) (14). That is a modest return for a defender who gave the club six seasons of reliability across the back line, and his farewell message called City "so much more than a club" (9).
The problem is not sentimental. It is structural. Ake was the one defender in the squad who could play left-back and left centre-back at a genuine elite level. His departure leaves Enzo Maresca with a hole on the left side that the current squad does not fill. Josko Gvardiol can shift across, but that only moves the problem. City have not yet signed a replacement, and the season is approaching.
Maresca's first week feels more like a clear-out than a new dawn
The new manager arrived at the Etihad on a three-year deal through 2029, his third stint at the club after two spells as Guardiola's assistant. The Chelsea fallout was messy. Chelsea issued a statement criticising his December resignation as unexpected and disruptive, and City reportedly paid over £17m in compensation, with Maresca himself settling separately (team background). He apologised. Now he has to make people forget it.
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This week did not help. Ake is gone. Academy defender Jahmai Simpson-Pusey has been confirmed as a permanent transfer to FC Koln (3). James Trafford is reportedly nearing an exit, with Pierce Charles arriving as the replacement goalkeeper (4). Academy prospect Xavier Parker is wanted by Liverpool after his contract expired, with United interest fading (2). That is four confirmed or likely departures and one injury-prone squad suddenly thinner at the back.
The incomings tell a different story. City have agreed a record-breaking deal for 16-year-old Leicester winger Jeremy Monga, reported at £12.5m plus a sell-on clause (7). Another €15m is reportedly being offered for a 16-year-old prospect (11). Azzedine Ounahi, the Morocco midfielder who impressed at the World Cup, is linked at €20m with Luis Enrique's reported approval (13). Maresca is rebuilding, but the rebuild is pointed at 2028, not at August.
The vultures are circling
Tottenham are reportedly preparing a £101m double bid for two City players (1). The report does not name the targets, but the timing is not subtle. A new manager, a squad in flux, a left side suddenly vacant. This is the window when clubs test City's resolve, and Spurs are first in line.
The irony is that City finished last season 15th with zero points from zero games played, a data anomaly of a blank table, but the reality is not comfortable. The squad Guardiola left behind is aging in key areas and thin in others. Maresca has three years to fix it, but he is starting with departures, not arrivals.
What to watch
The transfer window is open and the squad is incomplete. The left-back vacancy is the immediate priority. Tottenham's double bid, whether serious or speculative, is the first public test of City's summer resolve. And the Parker situation deserves attention: losing a homegrown academy talent to Liverpool on a free would sting in a summer already bleeding players.
Maresca has the job. He has the apology out of the way. Now he needs signings, and he needs them before preseason asks questions this squad cannot answer.
