Man City scouts may have already found their next Julian Alvarez

Pep Guardiola and Txiki Begiristain will have to work out how to replace Julian Alvarez.

The Argentine striker is heading to Atletico in a deal worth up to £82m and his minutes, goals and assists will need to be replaced. There will be pressure to spend in the transfer market - particularly with the sales the Blues have accrued both this year and for quite a few years now - but there are also internal options; Oscar Bobb was the standout player on the summer tour, Phil Foden is expected to play more inside this year while youngsters James McAtee and Nico O'Reilly are expected to be added to the squad.

Whatever Guardiola and Begiristain decide, City can be enormously satisfied at their work with Alvarez. They moved at a time when no other club was bold enough to in January 2022 - United interim boss Ralf Rangnick was urging Old Trafford bosses to sign him - and were rewarded with two years of excellent service from a player who was ideal for what Guardiola wanted from his forward.

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After two-and-a-half years, City are getting a humongous profit for a player who now wants a new challenge. It smashes the previous club record sale and allows the Blues to reinvest in the squad.

The money made on Alvarez justifies the approach of the recruitment team in South America to try to spot talents at source rather than waiting for them to move to another European club - as Robinho and Sergio Aguero did - and also gives them the funds to take more punts. As they look for the next Alvarez, City may even feel like they already have the next talent off the line.

Teenage midfielder Claudio