Manchester City will be playing Champions League football next season.
On Monday, City discovered that the appeal against their two-year European ban was overturned.
The decision meant more to City than simply competing in Europe, though.
Could you imagine the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, Sergio Aguero and even Pep Guardiola sticking around without any European football for two years?
Similarly, there’s simply no way they would have been able to attract top players if they couldn’t also offer them Champions League football.
But now that fear is over, attention will turn to who the club could sign this summer.
City are currently 21 points behind Liverpool are Guardiola will be fully aware his side need to strengthen to close that gap next season.
And we all know they’ve got the finances to do just that.
So who could they sign this summer? Well, we’ve looked at nine players they *could* sign. Some are more realistic than others…
Lautaro Martinez
Martinez was expected to join Barcelona but the coronavirus pandemic may have ended that deal. The 22-year-old could be the perfect replacement for his compatriot Sergio Aguero, who is 10 years his senior.
David Alaba
Bayern don’t exactly need Alaba with Alphonso Davies looking the real deal. Guardiola knows Alaba well from his time in Germany.
Ferran Torres
The 20-year-old Valencia winger is an incredible talent. He could be the perfect Leroy Sane replacement - if they needed one.
Kalidou Koulibaly
Don’t be surprised to see City spend big on a centre-back this summer to accompany Aymeric Laporte. Koulibaly is one of the best around.
Philippe Coutinho
File this under unlikely. But Coutinho is on the lookout for a new club and we all know he’s still got talent. With David Silva set to leave, could Coutinho provide Phil Foden with a bit of competition?
Nelson Semedo
Because City can never have too many full-backs…
Ben Chilwell
Chelsea have been heavily linked with the Leicester left-back but it seems City are interested too. Benjamin Mendy has struggled with injuries and Oleksandr Zinchenko probably isn’t quite good enough.
Jadon Sancho
Could Sancho return to the club that he left for Borussia Dortmund three years ago? It’s certainly not out of the question.
Harry Kane
What a sensational move this would be. But if Kane wants to win trophies and remain in England, it could well happen. Imagine the fee Daniel Levy would be demanding though…
Lionel Messi
We can dream, can’t we?
