Manchester City's 2023/24 Premier League season predicted with intense title race

Manchester City kick-off the 2023/24 season with a trip to newly-promoted Burnley on Friday, but could it be another title-winning campaign for Pep Guardiola's side?

The 2022/23 season was a historic one for Man City, with Guardiola's side completing the Treble, including both the Champions League and Premier League. After trailing Arsenal for the majority of the season, City eventually overtook the Gunners to win the Premier League, their fifth in the last six years.

And, City will be looking to keep their dominant run going next season and make it four in a row, but it could prove a tougher test than usual with a slightly-changed squad. The summer transfer window has seen the likes of Riyad Mahrez and Ilkay Gundogan depart and Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic arrive, though more outgoings are expected before the window shuts.

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So, how could City fare in the Premier League next season?

To set up this simulation, we used Football Manager 2023 to update Man City and the rest of the Premier League with the latest transfers, injuries and suspensions before simulating the 2023/24 season. This is what happened.

Attacking-wise, City had goals come from more outlets than just Erling Haaland in the simulation, with the Norwegian scoring just 15 goals in the simulation, though so did Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden. Kevin De Bruyne was the best City player in the simulation, scoring six, assisting 12 and managing an average rating of 7.63, the best in the squad and the second-best in the league.

Three of City's eight best-performing players were defenders, showing how strong they were at the back. In the league, Guardiola's side kept 21 clean sheets,