Manchester City have spent a lot of money since Pep Guardiola took charge of the club in 2016 – but how does their outlay compare to their old rivals Manchester United?
Guardiola once explained that “we have a lot of money to buy a lot of incredible players” is one of the key reasons for his success at the Etihad. And it can’t be said he’s not been successful during his time as City boss, having delivered four Premier League titles, four League Cups and one FA Cup during his time in England.
But City aren’t the only club that have spent lavishly during Guardiola’s reign. In fact, you only need to look across the city of Manchester to see another club that have spent over a billion pounds on player transfers in the last six and a half years.
The 51-year-old tactician has been keen to stress that City aren’t the only Premier League club to invest a lot of money in their squads.
“Listen – a lot of clubs invested. (Manchester) United, Arsenal – in periods before winning the leagues – invested more money than the other ones. When Chelsea started to win Premier Leagues, they invested more money than the other ones,” Guardiola told reporters back in 2020.
“I’m a good manager but I don’t win titles if I don’t have good players and good players are expensive. All the clubs spend a lot of money: Barcelona spend a lot of money, Madrid spend a lot of money, English teams spend a lot of money.
“If we build the club, in terms of the last decade, to compete with the elite of the Premier League or Champions League, we need to invest.
“We can spend as much money as our chairman or our owners want, but always always in the Financial Fair Play rules and we showed it. We were exonerated for something we were accused of all the time.
“I don’t want to apologise for anything. I’m sorry guys. Manchester City don’t have (to) apologise because three independent judges decided we have done everything properly. It’s clear – more than clear.”
While City have plenty to show for their transfer outlay, the same can’t be said for their city rivals United, who have endured a long five-year trophy drought that’s coincided with the majority of Guardiola’s time in England. New boss Erik ten Hag has certainly recognised this.
“The club has bought an unimaginable number of players in recent years who have not been good enough,” Ten Hag told reporters.
“Most purchases have been average – and at United average is not good…
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