XI Man City could have filled £900m gap with absurd signings

The Premier League says an independent commission found schemes at Manchester City had “artificially inflated the club’s revenues, and reduced its costs, by more than £900million”. The article attempts to put that figure into context by imagining an XI of players the club could have signed between 2009‑10 and 2017‑18.

Putting £900m into transfer context

Manchester City’s financial case has produced plenty of eye‑watering numbers, but few jump off the page quite like £900million. Ignoring wages, the author assembled an absurd XI from the biggest and best transfers of the era, yet the total still falls short of that sum.

The goalkeeper comparison starts with Ederson, who performed well for City, but the author argues that Alisson would have been the preferred Brazilian between the sticks. Liverpool paid £66million to sign Alisson from Roma, instantly solving a problem position and becoming a cornerstone of a side that challenged City at their peak.

Kyle Walker arrived for £45million in 2017, went on to make over 300 appearances and helped lift 18 major trophies. City also had Kieran Trippier, Joao Cancelo and Danilo on their books at various points, though the article does not dwell on the fees paid for Alvaro Odriozola, Nelson Semedo or Serge Aurier.

Cheating slightly, the author includes Ashley Young, who was still a winger when Manchester United signed him from Aston Villa for £17million in 2011. That type of signing – Premier League‑proven, peak age and available from a club above City in the hierarchy – fits the early‑year Abu Dhabi‑era recruitment model.

Guardiola promises to be in the stands against PSG amid Manchester City chaos

The absurd XI and its missed spend

Liverpool were the only side capable of properly disrupting City’s domestic dominance during the period, and the author suggests City could have avoided trouble by signing the players that transformed Jurgen Klopp’s near‑men into champions. Pep Guardiola has been blessed with outrageously expensive centre‑backs, yet none compare to Virgil van Dijk in all‑time Premier League conversations.

Marquinhos arrived for £27million as a teenage prodigy, went on to win 11 Ligue 1 titles and captained PSG to back‑to‑back Champions Leagues, remaining one of the world’s best centre‑backs. Luke Shaw’s £27million move to Manchester United would have offered better value, but his decade at Old Trafford has not left City wondering what might have been.

Jordi Alba was a bargain at £11million in 2012, and City would have loved him in his prime. Chelsea later paid £32million for him, a baffling figure given his role in becoming the first player to win successive Premier League titles with different clubs and his monstrous display against City in the Champions League final.

Arsenal and Aston Villa battle for Real Madrid prodigy Endrick

Toni Kroos cost Real Madrid £20million in 2014, formed an era‑defining partnership with Luka Modrić and won five Champions Leagues, a deal the author calls ridiculous business. Paul Pogba, a superstar transfer, dazzled at Juventus before being signed by Manchester United for a world‑record fee in 2016.