Could Enzo Maresca’s demands hand several players a Manchester City lifeline?
· Yahoo Sports
While Enzo Maresca and Pep Guardiola share similar footballing philosophies, life will be different at Manchester City with Maresca as the manager. One such difference between the pair is the size of the squad that each manager wants to operate with. Pep Guardiola preferred to work with a smaller squad to maintain performance and team harmony. Sam Lee has reported for The Athletic that Maresca would prefer to work with a bigger squad than Guardiola.
With that in mind, could Enzo Maresca’s demands hand several players a lifeline to resurrect their Manchester City careers? Perhaps it could depending on what role and position Maresca wants them to play.
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There appears to be four players who could be given a Manchester lifeline by Enzo Maresca.
Looking at the Manchester City squad, there are four players who could earn a lifeline of sorts from Enzo Maresca. Those four are Tijjani Reijnders, Nico Gonzalez, Rico Lewis, and James Trafford. There is a case for each to play a more prominent role under Maresca.
In the case of Nico Gonzalez, there is a vacancy in midfield with Bernardo Silva having left the club. Yes, City have signed Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest. They also remain in the market for another midfielder. Also, Rodri is set to have a delayed start to next season. That could be Nico’s lifeline if City do not sign another midfielder. The other factor is that Nico Gonzalez will get the pre season to impress Maresca unless he secures a summer transfer.
Tijjani Reijnders and Rico Lewis could also potentially fight for a role in Manchester City’s midfield. Reijnders may be a player that Maresca could use. Reijnders’ ability to score goals from midfield could be an attribute that Maresca values. However, the Dutch international would have to fight Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki for minutes you would assume. Rico Lewis has always looked to be a midfielder rather than a right-back. Could he play in midfield under Maresca? Perhaps he could but his size in the physical Premier League counts against him.
Enzo Maresca likes his goalkeeper to play a prominent role in his team’s build-up from the back. Does James Trafford now have an opportunity to become Manchester City’s first-choice goalkeeper? Gianluigi Donnarumma remains in Trafford’s way. Also, the Italian keeper has spent a year playing under Pep Guardiola so he does have an idea of what Maresca expects from his keeper with his feet. Perhaps Trafford will leave City this summer as expected. But you do sense that Maresca could possibly want to take a look at what Trafford can offer in goal.
Perhaps there could be a lifeline thrown to a forgotten City winger, but it does seem to be highly unlikely.
Manchester City are in the market for another winger this summer. It would seem unlikely that Savinho will be at the club when the 2026-27 season begins. A new report from Graeme Bailey for TeamTalk indicates that Enzo Maresca could be poised to hand Jack Grealish an opportunity to impress during Manchester City’s preseason. Bailey reports that Maresca wants to assess Grealish during City’s preseason and is prepared to give the England international an opportunity to fight for his City career. Lastly, it is also reported that Maresca is an admirer of Grealish as a player.
Firstly, Manchester City will be without a plethora of players at the beginning of their preseason. A host of City’s star players will be resting after their efforts at the ongoing World Cup. So it does seem realistic that Grealish will take part in Manchester City’s preseason. Grealish did spend the 2025-26 season on loan at Everton. He performed well before a broken foot ended his season. So it would not be a surprise to see Grealish involved in Manchester City’s preseason tour of Asia.
But is Grealish a chance of returning to Manchester City as a member of Enzo Maresca’s squad for the 2026-27 season? Nothing is impossible and stranger things have happened in football. However, if City sign a winger as expected, the chances of Grealish resurrecting his City career seem slim. Unless Grealish tears the house down during Manchester City’s preseason, the expectation would be that he’d depart City late in the summer transfer window.
Final thoughts.
Enzo Maresca taking over as Manchester City manager could give a host of City players the opportunity to resurrect their City careers. Players such as Rico Lewis, Tijjani Reijnders, Nico Gonzalez and James Trafford stand out as the players who have the best opportunity of doing so. Jack Grealish has been named as another but that would come as a major surprise.
Manchester City are entering a new era under Enzo Maresca. It will now be interesting to see if any of City’s fringe members take a step forward and play their way into contention under the Italian manager. Also, it will be fascinating to see if they are given that opportunity or if they have already made their mind up to leave the FA Cup and Carabao Cup holders.