Manchester City Transfer News: Pep Guardiola Reportedly to Spend £200M in Summer

Manchester City reportedly plan to spend as much as £200 million this summer in response to being knocked out of the UEFA Champions League by AS Monaco. Manager Pep Guardiola is said to want a quartet of new defenders after seeing his team concede six goals over two games against Monaco in the last 16.

The Citizens were eliminated from Europe's premier club competition after a 3-1 second-leg defeat in France on Wednesday but will embark on a major spending spree, as well as axing Vincent Kompany among a host of disappointing defenders.

The Daily Mirror's David McDonnell has detailed City's plans, including the decision to part ways with Kompany: "According to City sources, Kompany was '100 per cent fit' and ready to play, but Guardiola chose to omit him from his 18-man squad, with the defender said to be unhappy at the snub. The Belgian, 30, is one of several defenders set to leave City this summer along with Bacary Sagna, Gael Clichy and Pablo Zabaleta."

McDonnell also detailed which players Guardiola has in mind to repair a wafer-thin back line: "City have already identified several defensive targets, Juventus and Italy centre-half Leonardo Bonucci, Valencia left-back Jose Gaya and Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich, who can play at right-back and in midfield."

There is no denying City's squad needs a major retooling in defensive areas. Despite spending big on John Stones last summer, Guardiola's squad has continued to be vulnerable at the back.

The Citizens leaked 10 goals during the group stage of the Champions League, per the tournament's official website. Guardiola's men have also conceded 29 times in 27 matches in the Premier League this season.

Finding the right partner for Stones has been the biggest problem, with Guardiola most often content to trust converted left-back Aleksandar Kolarov in the middle.

Ironically, a fit Kompany would surely toughen up City's soft middle. Yet Guardiola's decision to leave the oft-injured former skipper out in Monaco is a strong indicator City are ready to finally move on from the brittle 30-year-old.

Signing a player such as Juventus linchpin Leonardo Bonucci would be the ideal remedy, especially since Bonucci's renowned quality on the ball would fit Guardiola's possession-based game.

Similarly, targeting Jose Gaya and Joshua Kimmich would also make sense considering how former Arsenal duo Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna continue to struggle to offer much going forward.

However, the defence will ultimately only be as good as the goalkeeper behind it. Per McDonnell, Guardiola is ready to admit he made a mistake signing Claudio Bravo from Barcelona this summer and is now ready to try and tempt Bayern Munich stopper Manuel Neuer into a move.

Bravo controversially replaced England man Joe Hart, who was sent on loan to Serie A side Torino. However, Bravo's struggles won't open the door for Hart's return, according to McDonnell: "City are also set to offload four players currently on loan - Joe Hart, Samir Nasri, Wilfred Bony and Eliaquim Mangala - which means there could be up to 10 players leaving this summer."

It's no surprise City would plan big changes after their humbling in Europe. As ESPN FC's Mark Ogden has correctly pointed out, Guardiola has opened himself up to criticism for City's tactical shortcomings defensively.

City spent big last summer, but it seems the spending will continue as an under-pressure Guardiola searches for more immediate ways to create the magic formula in Manchester.