For many years, Manchester City was just another English team trying to elbow its way to the top through the likes of more loaded Premier League teams. This was a rather difficult task at the time as the Citizens lacked funds to build a star-studded team. Websites like sportsbet.io always placed lower odds on City, with few believing the situation would become better.
However, the 2008 ownership changed when Sheikh Mansour bought the Citizens, investing millions of pounds into the club’s transformation. Since then, Manchester City started investing a lot of money in promising players to help the team rise from the ashes and live up to its true potential.
Obviously, the new owner didn’t mind spending gigantic sums on the likes of experienced and rising footballers, which consequently showed results and became apparent in the City’s gameplay. That said, take a look at five players whose names became world-known since Sheikh Mansour’s arrival to Manchester.
Yaya Toure
Yaya Toure joined Manchester City in 2010. At the time of signing the contract, he performed a necessary role in forming a strong connection between the two field sides.
This midfielder wore the sky-blue jersey until 2018, and even though goal-scoring wasn’t his primary role, he managed to break through the front line and score 79 times. Some of his goals were monumental, such as those leading to the victory in the Premier League in 2013/14.
Many agree that his performance in Manchester City paved the way for his current coaching career.
David Silva
While many football fans compare players by the number of scored goals, true aficionados know that other skills play a crucial role in the overall team’s success. The perfect example of these skills come from David Silva, a Spaniard with over 400 appearances for the Citizens.
Silva spent a decade in Manchester City and left a trace in the team’s gameplay thanks to his perfect technique crowned by seamless passes. Watching David Silva organise magical action was a joy since everything he did on the field looked like child’s play.
Sergio Aguero
Another player with a decade-long career in Manchester City is Sergio Aguero. This Argentinian striker counts 260 goals scored for the Citizens. While this number of goals is more than enough for a total of 390 appearances, football experts say Aguero’s score would have been even better if it weren’t for many injuries that struck him while playing in England.
Nevertheless, even this score was more than enough to put the striker on a pedestal and help him become the City’s top striker of all time. We can’t pinpoint which Aguero’s goal was the most important one, but no doubt all of them helped both him and his team stand out from the crowd in the Premier League and other competitions.
Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling arrived in England from Jamaica, but it didn’t take long to blend in and dominate the field, thanks to his impressive talent. Manchester City took Sterling from Liverpool and let the young player flourish under the team financed by the Sheikh.
Little by little, Sterling became one of the best forward players who weren’t afraid to attack even the biggest Manchester City rivals. He’s been on the field more than 300 times on behalf of the Citizens and scored one goal every third game on average. No doubt we’ll see many more terrific games from Sterling as he’s only 26 years old.
Kevin De Bruyne
After being overlooked by Chelsea, Kevin De Bruyne spent a year in Wolfsburg until finally being spotted by Manchester City in 2015 and brought over for £55 million. That sum of money was a club record at the time, and as it turned out, the money was well-spent.
While all the other Manchester City players excel in one thing or another, De Bruyne seems to have it all. The Belgian has rightfully been carrying the title of a playmaker due to his precise passes, timely assists, and important goals.
Under the genius leadership of Pep Guardiola, this gifted midfielder became known as one of the most valuable players in the Premier League, which he proved in more than 260 appearances for the Citizens.