Why Man City must reject Arsenal interest in Oleksandr Zinchenko

The spotlight on title-winning teams will inevitably fall on the show's stars, the players who have contributed most in a glittering season or come up clutch at crucial moments (hello, Ilkay Gundogan).

But successes of the like Manchester City have achieved in recent years are built on far more than that. They need solid foundations, such as good characters who understand their role in the team. Keeping everyone happy in a squad of around 20 professionals in a team as supreme as City's is no easy task, however, and that is why Pep Guardiola has always had a phlegmatic approach to players who want to get off the ride that is being provided at the Etihad.

So despite a relatively thin squad and having recently secured a fourth Premier League title in five years, this is again a summer in which City are facing up to some possible departures.

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Raheem Sterling is considering his own future with 12 months remaining on his contract and Oleksandr Zinchenko and Gabriel Jesus are both being pursued by Arsenal. The summer arrivals of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez will clearly give Jesus reason to think about his future and it does feel like it might be time for a change for the Brazilian.

Of that trio it's Zinchenko who is the lowest key player, and the one who would receive the fewest column inches should he leave this summer. But he's also exactly the kind of player that every successful side needs to keep the wheels in motion.

The 25-year-old started just 10 Premier League games last season and in his five campaigns against City he's never begun more than 15 and never featured in more than 20 of the club's 38 league fixtures, but