How Man City's squad could look in 2025 after Erling Haaland signing

Manchester City already have a starting XI under contract for the 2025/26 season following the signings of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez this summer.

City are well known these days for impressive forward-planning, tying down key players on long-term contracts to minimise the risk of someone leaving on a free transfer. That is a factor all the more important this summer, as players including Gabriel Jesus, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva are all linked with exits but all have at least one year left on their current contracts so will earn City a decent transfer fee if they leave.

It may be that players like that aren't part of City's long-term future, but the Blues have managed to tie down at least ten players for 2025 and beyond and can even put together a makeshift starting XI for the first game of that 2025/26 season, assuming all are still at the club.

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Ederson has been City's first-choice goalkeeper for some time now, and has a contract until 2026, when he would still only just have turned 32. Zack Steffen has ambitions of succeeding Ederson and may have to be patient, although he is contracted until 2025 so could be persuaded to sign a new deal if he is happy with his prospects in three years' time. Scott Carson may have retired by this point, so another third-choice goalkeeper would be needed either as a new signing or from the academy.

For a 2025/26 starting XI, the defence would have to be a put-together back three, consisting of Joao Cancelo, Ruben Dias and John Stones. Cancelo and Dias have contracts until 2027, with Stones' deal expiring in 2026. There are a handful of academy players with long-term contracts too, so they could hope to be