Manchester City have dominated the Premier League for the past 14 years. Even before Josep Guardiola’s historic appointment, the club was on the rise, winning titles in the 2011/12 and 2013/14 seasons.
But the 54-year-old took a good thing and immortalized it. The Man City dynasty is one of the greatest in modern European history.
He is now tasked with shaping the next phase of the project. The Citizens struggled throughout 2024/25, coming up empty-handed on the trophy front with the exception of the Community Shield at the start of the year.
It may be a period of transition, but Manchester City are masters of the market. Many clubs have the financial strength but do not have the funds or expertise to realize their ambitions.
City have hit the jackpot many times, and that was certainly the case with David Silva. If Guardiola’s final chapter is to be a glorious one, he will be hoping to create a new version of the iconic Spaniard.
David Silva’s Man City record
Fifteen years ago, in 2010, Manchester City signed Silva from Valencia for a fee of £24 million. It was the second time England’s new superpowers were lucky, having missed out on the plucky playmaker in 2008.
Despite an excellent start to life in his home country, Silva arrived in England and sat regularly on the bench for the first few weeks of his first season before establishing his home base in the second half of the year.
Humble beginnings led to glorious success that few players have ever been able to achieve. Silva won so many trophies, but his intelligence, style and smoothness on the ball were among the best in Premier League history.
Indeed, Guardiola has rarely managed a better player, calling his compatriot “one of the best of all time” in 2019.
He played in 436 games. He scored 77 goals. He recorded 136 assists. Silva won all of England and left before City could finally win gold in the Champions League, but City’s victories were underpinned by the Spaniard’s tireless efforts over the years in Manchester.
Silva ranks seventh on the all-time list with 97 assists in the Premier League. And with Kevin De Bruyne relinquishing his title this summer, signing a new playmaking unit became essential.
Man City often strike gold in the transfer market. Did they do that with the new version of Silva?
Man City’s new signing David Silva
Silva’s dynamism and expertise on the ball helped City transition to a more on-the-ball style of play. His brilliant career in England began with Guardiola’s appointment. In many ways, they were a match made in heaven.
Now, Pep may have landed the next version in Rayan Cherki. Cherki is more advanced and often plays in a wider slot than the 2010 World Cup champion remembers, while Silva has played across many positions, especially in the early stages of his career.
French creator Cherki, who joined from Lyon in an initial £30.5m deal this summer, made a name for himself in his home country and was regarded as one of the country’s most exciting talents from an early age, having spent a prolific final year at Les Gonesses, scoring 13 goals and providing 21 assists in all competitions.
A “Ballon d’Or talent”, as data analyst Ben Mattinson has dubbed him, is an elite close control operator with similar qualities of awareness and flair, similar to Silva.
What’s more, the 22-year-old, like the young Silva, is positionally versatile and could become a maestro like the former City captain if he develops his composure and work rate in the deeper stages of play.
Cherki – Career statistics by position | ||
|---|---|---|
position | app | Goal (assist) |
attacking midfield | 71 | 20(12) |
right wing | 59 | 12(23) |
left wing | 17 | 0 (3) |
center forward | 9 | 4 (0) |
Dates via Transfermarkt | ||
After all, he ranks in the top 1% for shot-creating actions and in the top 2% for progressive passes per 90 for attacking midfielders and wingers in Europe’s top five leagues over the past year, according to FBref data, underscoring his potential suitability for the role.
A pass is considered progressive if the distance between the starting point and the next touch is at least 10 meters closer to the completed pass into the opponent’s goal or into the penalty area.
A thigh injury has limited the Frenchman to just three appearances this season, but he scored from the bench in City’s opening day win over Wolverhampton Wanderers, then played for nearly an hour against Tottenham Hotspur, creating big chances and winning five duels.
The fact that the fleet-footed talent made 185 appearances for Lyon and met with Liverpool manager Arne Slott this summer to discuss a potential move to Merseyside highlights just how talented Guardiola is.
And given Pep’s track record of elevating star players to elite status, there is no doubt that Cherki is best placed to take that big step, having already been hailed as a “magician” on the ball by journalist Julian Lawrence.
This special star was brought in to help shape Manchester City’s next era, but it’s perhaps exciting to see the club finding their footing at this early stage of the season without Cherki hitting all cylinders, or even playing at all.
We know Man City haven’t signed Cherki fully, but he is a player who has the ability to become one of the best players in the world.
When Man City signed 24-year-old Silva from Valencia in 2010, they bet on a talented maestro with untapped potential.
As was often the case during the early Sheikh Mansour era, Etihad’s side achieved even more.
