Pep reveals Man City's January transfer plans

Pep Guardiola has revealed Premier League champions Man City's plans for the January transfer window.

"If we can, we have to add players in January… definitely!" said Guardiola to Prime Video Sport in the lead-up to Man City's Boxing Day clash with Everton.

“We struggled especially at the back, in the middle”, he continued, focusing on the key areas where Man City have been struggling this season.

The lack of quality has been so evident that, according to Guardiola, even his own squad is begging for transfers. “I think even the players asked ourselves… we are going to add some players?! Please!”

READ MORE: Should Man City SACK Pep Guardiola?!

That seems a ridiculous thing for a squad that has won four Premier League titles in a row and just two years ago pulled off English football's second-ever Treble. But City have been in a historically bad run of form.

Man City have won just once in their last 12 games, quite absurdly losing nine of those 12 matches as Pep's men have tumbled from top of the table to 7th, a full 12 points behind league leaders Liverpool.

Their quest to continue the City era of dominance and win an unprecedented fifth straight title has fallen apart since their talismanic midfielder Rodri got injured, and they are hanging on by a thread in the league phase of the Champions League as well.

Big names dropped for Everton clash

In an effort to arrest their startling decline of form, Pep Guardiola has dropped five players for the game against Everton.

Not just dropped to the bench, either. The following quintet are gone from the matchday squad and as such will play no part of the game on Boxing Day.

READ MORE: Which football managers have been sacked this season?

Kyle Walker, John Stones, Jack Grealish, Ederson and Matheus Nunes are all out of the Man City squad.

And while John Stones often struggles with injuries and Matheus Nunes' inexplicable errors were the reason for their derby defeat to Man Utd, the exclusion of legends like Walker and Ederson is a true sign of their decline.

Jack Grealish, meanwhile, will now have just one last chance to score a club goal in 2024. The English winger has not found the back of the net in a City kit since the 16th December 2023, and with his exclusion against Everton now has to hope he sees the pitch away to Leicester on the 29th December 2024 otherwise that awful record will be his.