How Many Marquee Signings Should Manchester City Make This Summer?

All the signs suggest Manchester City will embark on something of an overhaul of their first-team squad this summer.

Financial fair play (FFP) sanctions have been lifted, meaning Manuel Pellegrini, the City manager, and Txiki Begiristain, the sporting director, will not be restricted in terms of their net spend in the same way they were 12 months ago.

There’s already a host of players whose departures are all but confirmed. Micah Richards, Alvaro Negredo and Frank Lampard won’t be on the books come June, while James Milner and Stevan Jovetic also look likely to leave.

It gives City plenty of room to manoeuvre in the next transfer window. Their last set of financial results, published on the official club site, showed significant revenue growth, with the club now tantalisingly close to financial self-sufficiency.

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Ferran Soriano, the chief executive, was charged with growing City’s appeal across the world, and his strategy appears to be working. It means the club now has financial muscle regardless of UEFA’s FFP initiative. Their turnover now stands at £347 million—a significant £76 million increase on the previous year's results—with losses now just £23 million, which includes the £16 million fine from UEFA for breaking FFP rules over the 2012 and 2013 accounting years.

Given the financial dire straits the club found themselves in pre-2008, it’s remarkable that some have questioned the intentions of Sheikh Mansour, the man who has not only revolutionised every aspect of the club but put them on a sound financial footing for years to come.

And Pellegrini himself, in an interview with Sid Lowe for the Guardian, has spoken of the need to sign a “crack,” world-class performer who can lift the profile of the squad across the world. He also needs one or two other marquee signings, players in the £25 million plus bracket, to re-energise a squad that has regressed in the past few months.

The “crack” they will surely target is Paul Pogba, the Juventus midfielder with an array of attributes that make him the natural heir to Yaya Toure’s throne. Given he turned 32 earlier this month, lining up a replacement for Toure is vital, and 22-year-old Pogba is just the man. He possess pace, power, goalscoring ability and remarkable stamina. 

Marco Verratti is another player who would help City in their quest to revamp their midfield. They've lacked dynamism in the centre of the pitch for much of the season, and the Paris Saint-Germain man, an Italy international, would solve that problem. 

Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

He's a high-intensity tough-tackling midfielder, but one who is also technically gifted too, often found kick-starting moves from deep with his assured range of passing. He's impressed both domestically and in Europe this season, and if City could attract him, it would be a fine piece of transfer business. 

City's squad also desperately needs pace in attacking areas—a ball-carrier who can commit defenders and add thrust to the side's counter-attacking game. Raheem Sterling, who looks set to leave Liverpool after contract negotiations hit a wall, as reported by BBC Sport, is surely a player the club will target. He ticks a number of boxes: young, quick, direct, skilful and homegrown.

His price tag remains a potential stumbling block. Liverpool, quite rightly, value him highly and feel they have played a vital role in his development and don’t want or need to sell.

However, he has just two years left on his current deal and has made it pretty clear he’s unhappy and wants a move. City are well placed to capitalise on that and perhaps drive the price down from the likely £50 million starting position.

Perhaps a striker, too, is needed. As well as Jovetic's almost certain departure, Edin Dzeko is also another candidate to be sacrificed. Six goals in all competitions this season simply isn't good enough, and at 29, with Wilfried Bony already in place and looking to kick on at the start of the next campaign, Dzeko may well be a saleable asset. 

To revamp the squad in what looks set to be a crucial summer, City need one top-tier talent and two or three other marquee names. Given the club's improving financial state and the removal of the debilitating FFP sanctions, as well as a number of high-earners being sold, they should be able to compete for almost any player. 

Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2014-15 season. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.