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Former Premier League striker Kevin Campbell has predicted a mass squad overhaul at Newcastle United in the upcoming summer transfer window. 

The lowdown: A new era awaits at Newcastle

Following the completion of the protracted takeover in 2021, newly-appointed Toon manager Eddie Howe was able to sign Bruno Guimaraes, Dan Burn, Kieran Trippier, Matt Targett and Chris Wood during the January transfer window.

Those arrivals meant that previously regular first-teamers Jamal Lewis, Ciaran Clark and Isaac Hayden were all left out of the Premier League squad for the second half of the 2021/22 campaign.

Since then, the Magpies have moved clear of the threat of relegation and can already begin planning for life in the top flight next term, as Howe himself predicted that ‘difficult decisions’ regarding the squad lie ahead.

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Those plans could well include a mass exodus, according to one onlooker…

The latest: Campbell predicts multiple departures

Speaking to Football Insider, Campbell – who works for talkSPORT as a pundit – has suggested that Howe will oversee plenty of changes to his Newcastle squad this summer.

The 52-year-old former Arsenal striker explained: “They have got to clear the decks. They might have to play some players off. That is the other thing that has to be considered.

“We saw Arsenal do it in order to create room in their squad for new signings. Players are on such good contracts now. Clubs have to pay players off in some cases.

“Newcastle will have a plan of what they want to do. I’m sure they have a deep budget. Adding quality to that squad is the order of the day. I don’t think it matters what department. They will be big, big movers and shakers this summer.”

The verdict: Exciting times

Following on from the euphoria of the eagerly anticipated takeover, the Newcastle faithful will have been delighted with the upturn in fortunes under Howe.

However, the recent defeats at the hands of Liverpool and Manchester City have served as a reality check as to just how far away the Magpies are from challenging in the upper echelons of the Premier League.

Similar smart recruitment akin to what was an impressive January window would suffice for the Toon, whilst the likes of Lewis, Clark and Hayden in particular could be fearing for their futures at St James’ Park as the new-look hierarchy make their intentions known.

Beyond that outcast trio, the likes of lesser-seen players such as Federico Fernandez, Paul Dummett, Jeff Hendrick and Dwight Gayle (just 22 combined Newcastle appearances this season) might all be fearing for their roles in Howe’s plans, should Campbell be on the money with his prediction.

In other news, talkSPORT man admits ‘concern’ over Newcastle star

Leeds United midfielder Archie Gray has signed a two-year scholarship at Elland Road.

The Lowdown: Manchester City interest

Gray burst onto the scene in Yorkshire last season when Marcelo Bielsa named him as a substitute in Premier League games with Arsenal and West Ham at the age of 15.

Now 16, the midfielder was named in the final four Premier League match-day squads of the 2021/22 campaign and again in the opening day win against Wolves last month.

Premier League champions Manchester City are among a host of top-flight clubs who are keen on the midfielder, who has now penned fresh terms with the Whites.

The Latest: Two-year deal

Leeds announced news on their official website on Thursday of ten new scholars.

One of those was Gray, who has penned a two-year deal at Thorp Arch alongside recent summer signings Charlie Crew, Rory Mahady and Max McFadden.

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The Verdict: Good news

It looks as if Gray could be a future star, so keeping him at Yorkshire for the next two years is great news for everyone involved with the club.

He’s already catching the eye of City and others, and you’d expect that interest may only increase should he continue his rapid development.

More Premier League match-day squad inclusions under Jesse Marsch could be on the cards for the player who the Leeds boss labelled as ‘intelligent’, and a professional deal could follow suit.

Australia’s batsmen have spoken a lot about having a gameplan to deal with India’s spinners. On Saturday, they were undone by sticking to them so rigidly that they forgot to think on their feet

Arun Venugopal in Ranchi08-Oct-2017This could easily be an episode of Friends. Just trade Central Perk for Ranchi, remove Matthew Perry and Matt Le Blanc and throw Glenn Maxwell and Aaron Finch into the mix. The two Australian batsmen are perfectly suited to play Chandler Bing and Joey Tribbiani. Like the on-screen characters, they are excellent mates, and have even shared an apartment in Melbourne at one point. Now, they are out on a speed date with India’s bowlers and have to look out for each other.But, hey, who are we kidding? Finch needs little looking after. He has charmed his way into the such good form, and he has done it so very easily, that he was Australia’s leading run-getter in the ODI series, playing only three of the five matches. Maxwell, meanwhile, has tried everything only to be shot down.Facing his second delivery from Jasprit Bumrah, he cleared his front leg and hoisted his bat as if to hack someone. That violent prelude ultimately culminated in a jittery dab to third man for one. Later, against Bhuvneshwar Kumar, there were a couple of hopeful swipes that would have left the off stump he was supposed to protect cringing. Finch knew his partner needed help and so he showed how it was done.Hardik Pandya had stuffed the area between point and mid-off with five fielders, and unleashed the knuckle ball. The idea was to mess with the batsman’s timing and it would have worked if Finch had been throwing himself at the ball as eagerly as Maxwell. But he was a little more artful than that. Only after the ball had signalled its intentions, coming close to his body, did he gently lob it over the infield. The shot that followed was smoother than Joey’s catchphrase as Finch cut all along the ground and perfectly into the gap.Australia had got to 49 for 1 in six overs, and in light of that foundation, and with Finch as his wingman, it looked like Maxwell might finally prosper. But, India had what it took to spook him. Again.Yuzvendra Chahal is no Moriarty but Maxwell wasn’t Sherlock Holmes either. On this tour, he is just awkward, edgy and down-on-luck Chandler. The first ball of the contest was cut for a couple, the second for a four, and the third was a long hop which was pulled straight to a newly-placed short midwicket. In what was almost a self-deprecatory punchline, Chahal turned around, hid his face in his hands and smiled sheepishly. He had just dismissed Maxwell four times in four tries.And, that’s when the infamous unravelling of the Australian middle order began. Three overs later, Finch, who was sweeping compulsively and effectively, was bowled when Kuldeep Yadav adapted to the challenge in front of him with a fuller and faster delivery. A last-minute adjustment to offer the straight bat came too late, and Finch’s pick-up line fell flat for once.Glenn Maxwell prepares to reverse sweep•Associated PressAustralia have spoken all tour about having a “game plan” against spin but on Saturday they were undone by sticking to them too rigidly. Against a varied and potent bowling attack, and on a pitch that wasn’t really helping strokeplay, pre-match preparation amounts to little if the batsmen cannot think on their feet. They came in looking to either sweep – or like Moises Henriques, run out and slog – the spinners and neither worked.Finch disagreed with that assessment, however, and instead offered as explanation a word that had plenty of airtime during the Test series between India and Australia earlier this year – “brain-fade”.”I thought on that wicket, to Kuldeep, sweeping was a safer option than taking him over the top,” he said. “Some balls were spinning. It was hard to judge the bounce on a track that was quite difficult. I found sweep was the safer option. One, to get off strike, and [two,] to get a boundary as well if I could pick out a gap. But I kept picking out a fielder. The ball that I got out on was a little bit of brain fade, I went to sweep and just tried to chip him on the on side for one, and missed it. It happens in the games, in particular in T20s.”When he was asked if Australia could have approached the middle more cautiously, Finch said the presence of Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah at the death made batsmen take more risks in the middle stages. “When you look at the history of this ground, it suggests that 150 is a par score or the average score batting first on this surface. We wanted to make sure we were up and around that mark.”We knew with how competent their bowlers are at the death. Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah, in particular, are two of the finest going around at executing in the end. We felt we had to play a little bit more high-risk game through the middle overs to maximise. Unfortunately we just kept losing wickets.”Despite Maxwell’s poor run, Finch felt he wasn’t far away from a big score. “It’s always tough when someone gets dropped. I’ve been there, I know that feeling all too well,” he said. “Particularly on a tour, you tend to go into a shell, but he was the exact opposite. He was up and about around the group and doing everything to help anybody perform well on the day.”He has had a couple of unlucky dismissals. He batted well in the first ODI but it was a rain-shortened match. He is batting well in the nets and he is doing everything he can. Sometimes form just eludes you a little bit. But we’ve seen how dominant and destructive he is in these conditions before so I don’t think it is far away. Just a few game-plan tinkers here and there would go a long way in just taking the pressure off himself.”He probably feels that people expect him to score at 200 [strike-rate]. Batting at No. 3 is a different responsibility in this format for him. I know he’s opened a couple of time, but he is predominantly a middle-over player. It’s a tough position to bat; some guys love it, some guys don’t. It is one of those positions that can be such a swing type of position in the order.”

Stats highlights from a rain-interrupted third day at Old Trafford

S Rajesh24-Jul-20162 Instances of England not enforcing the follow-on after a first-innings lead of more than 391, which is their lead in this Test. Against West Indies in Kingston in 1930, they batted again in a Timeless Test despite a lead of 563 – George Headley scored a double-hundred in the second innings to save that game for West Indies – while in 1928, in Don Bradman’s debut Test, England batted again after taking a lead of 399 in Brisbane, and won by a record margin of 675 runs. There are only two other instances of any team not enforcing a follow-on after a lead of more than 391, both by Australia against England: in 2006 in Brisbane (lead 445), and in 2013 in Adelaide (lead 398).1 Instance of England taking a bigger first-innings lead in Tests against Pakistan: at Trent Bridge in 1954, they took a lead of 401 and went on to win by an innings and 129 runs. Only five times have Pakistan conceded a lead bigger than 391 in Tests, twice when batting second, and three times when batting first.7 Fifty-plus scores for Misbah-ul-Haq in his last ten Test innings. In these ten innings, which started in July last year, Misbah has scored 577 runs at an average of 64.11, with two hundreds and five fifties.60 The partnership between Misbah and Wahab Riaz, Pakistan’s third best for the ninth wicket in Tests in England.16 Instances when Pakistan have been eight down for less than 120 in Tests in England, out of the 77 occasions when they have batted long enough for No. 10 to have a bat. There were five such instances in the 2010 series alone.39 Wahab Riaz’s score, the fourth best by a Pakistan No. 10 batsman in Tests against England. The three higher scores were all made before 1985, with the highest being 90, by Sarfraz Nawaz in Lahore in 1984.92.45 Alastair Cook’s strike rate so far in the second innings (49 not out off 53), his best in a Test innings in which he has faced at least 25 deliveries. His previous best was 92.30 (36 off 39) against India at Lord’s in 2007.402 The highest fourth-innings total at Old Trafford, by Australia in 1981. The next best is 394, by West Indies in 2007. In terms of overs batted, the highest in the fourth innings here is 145.1, by India in 1959.

Plays of the Day from the match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab

Abhishek Purohit09-May-2015The three mistakesKolkata Knight Riders put down M Vijay as many as three times during his innings of 28. A jumping Gautam Gambhir could not hold on to an airy drive at short extra cover off Andre Russell. Sunil Narine would suffer twice next. Brad Hogg messed up at square leg and then Umesh Yadav grassed the simplest of the three chances at short fine leg.The Narine DIY methodThree balls after Umesh had denied him, Narine took his unreliable fielders out of the equation to finally get his man. Vijay had been relying on the sweep but went too far across this time in trying to sweep an offbreak. The ball bounced and spun past the batsman to hit leg stump.The first non-Narine strikeIt took 99 balls for someone other than Narine to also be involved in a dismissal. Glenn Maxwell heaved one high over midwicket, and Johan Botha came in from the boundary to take it safely. It was an occasion for Knight Riders given how many chances they had shelled, and Botha celebrated by kicking the ball away. The bowler was… Narine.

Reactions to Stuart Broad’s decision to stand his ground against an appeal on the third day of the first Ashes Test

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jul-2013″What Stuart Broad did amounts to the same thing as [Denesh] Ramdin. He knew he had hit the ball. The ICC fined Ramdin and suspended him for ‘actions that were contrary to the spirit of the game’. What Stuart Broad did is contrary to the spirit of the game. He played the ball and stayed there.”
“Don’t have a problem with Stuart Broad not walking its a decision which he will have to live with! #Ashes.”
“If you start banning players who don’t walk, Australia wouldn’t have a team”
So should a bowler call back the batter when he knows its a bad decision ? Of course not , I’m bored of this !
“Just saw the Broad dismissal … sorry non-dismissal. No issue with him not walking but an appalling piece of umpiring. Hard to fathom.”

By the way, you can't blame Broad for not walking, hats off I say if you nick it to 1st slip stand your ground & get given not out !

— Shane Warne (@warne888) July 12, 2013

“You can pinch the soap from a hotel without shame but you can’t rob the safe. There are many grades of grey in cricket’s spirit.”
“Once, professionalism explained walking: it was mutual respect between pros. Now, professionalism excuses not walking. Pathetic.”
“Australians have a reputation (other than Gilchrist) for not walking, not sure I’ve ever seen anything like that before with Broad’s edge!”

“I have no problem with batsmen not walking if there is 1% of doubt. But Broad 100% knew he was out, and cheated. Unacceptable.”

Thinking about the Broad-walk. Is it so wrong given the times you are given out incorrectly? Leave to umpires or self regulate a la golf?

— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) July 12, 2013

If you find somebody's wallet and nobody (no "umpire") sees you pick it up, you don't keep it, you walk to a police station & hand it in.

— Richard Dawkins (@RichardDawkins) July 12, 2013

With a disciplined performance, Sri Lanka pulled off a remarkable win in Durban and compounded South Africa’s recent miseries at the venue

Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan29-Dec-2011Sri Lanka’s 208-run win is only their sixth outside the subcontinent (not involving Zimbabwe) and their maiden win in South Africa. Before this, they had two wins each in England and New Zealand and one in the West Indies. It is also their first win since the victory over India in Galle in July 2010. In 16 Tests since Muttiah Muralitharan’s retirement, Sri Lanka have won one Test, lost five and drawn ten. South Africa were beaten in a Durban Test for the fourth consecutive time. Their previous losses came against Australia, England and India. It is also their fourth consecutive loss in a home Boxing Day Test match. Their win-loss record at the venue since 2000 now stands at 5-5 with five defeats coming in the last seven Tests. The 208-run defeat margin is the fourth-largest (in terms of runs) for South Africa in home Tests since their readmission and the second-highest in Durban in the same period. They have lost three times by an innings (twice to Australia and once to England). The win is also Sri Lanka’s fifth over South Africa. Rangana Herath’s match analysis of 9 for 128 is the second-best for Sri Lanka in South Africa after Muralitharan’s 11 for 161 in Durban in 2000. It is also Herath’s best match bowling performance surpassing his 8 for 133 against Australia in Galle earlier this year.Dale Steyn picked up his 17th five-wicket haul in just his 50th Test. Among South African bowlers, he is behind only Allan Donald and Makhaya Ntini, who have 20 and 18 five-wicket hauls respectively. This is only the third occasion that South Africa have lost a Test despite Steyn picking up a five-wicket haul. The previous two matches were against Sri Lanka at the P Sara Oval in 2006 and India in Durban in 2010.Jacques Kallis fell for a duck in both innings. It is his first pair in Tests and his third duck since the beginning of November. His previous three ducks came in a span of almost three years.Hashim Amla became the third South African batsman to make two fifty-plus scores in a match against Sri Lanka after Daryl Cullinan and Kallis. It is also the sixth time that Amla has managed two fifty-plus scores in a Test.The 99-run partnership between AB de Villiers and Steyn is the second-highest stand for the seventh wicket for South Africa against Sri Lanka.de Villiers, with his 27th half-century moved to fifth on the list of South African batsmen with the most Test half-centuries.Jacques Rudolph, who made a comeback after five years, last scored a half-century in 2006 in Colombo. Since that innings, he has scored 187 runs in nine innings at an average of 20.77.Steyn’s 43 is his third-highest score overall and his second-highest in Tests in Durban. All three of his top scores have come in Boxing Day Tests.

He has been marked for big things since he was 15; days short of 20th birthday he has announced himself for all to see

Firdose Moonda18-Jun-2009The first bowler Wayne Parnell saw bowl live was Ashish Nehra. The young Eastern Cape hopeful was mesmerised by the man from Delhi. Apart from also being a fellow left-armer, Nehra had the ability to move the ball off the wicket, which caught Parnell’s eye. The new nut swung as though it was dancing to a tune only it could hear, being played by Nehra himself. He changed his line and length ever so slightly, was accurate and pacy, and had an inswinger to behold. Parnell just may have seen a little bit of himself in Nehra.Although Parnell has been in England recently, playing for Kent, he hasn’t lost sight of the first international bowler he watched. In fact, Parnell must have been watching Nehra extra closely during the IPL: he looks just as devastating in the World Twenty20 as Nehra was for the Delhi Daredevils in the IPL. Such has been Parnell’s rise to prominence that it’s difficult to believe that as little as 18 months ago he was captaining his school team.Parnell wasn’t just any other schoolboy. At 15 he was selected for the South African Under-19 team to play in the World Cup in Sri Lanka. South Africa had a mediocre tournament, losing to Nepal in the plate semi-final. Two years later he returned to captain the team. This time it was different. He led his team to the final (which they lost to India by 12 runs on the Duckworth-Lewis method) and his individual performances helped him make a name for himself.His voice changes when he speaks of his most special memory of that World Cup. The serious Parnell becomes reminiscent, like a young child recalling his favourite ice-cream. “The standout performance for me was the quarter-final against Bangladesh. I scored 57 and took six wickets for eight runs and we won that match by a huge margin [201 runs]. That is a very special memory for me.”That match-winning performance and his leadership skills throughout the competition all but guaranteed Parnell a career in cricket. By then his life had already significantly changed because of the sport. Parnell discovered he could bowl when he was just seven. He was playing in a game of mini-cricket and hit a batsman with a bouncer, leaving the poor child with a bloodied nose. Parnell continued playing cricket and a host of other sports while in primary school.Christo Esau, the Youth Coach of Eastern Province Cricket, was instrumental in Parnell being awarded a scholarship to Grey College, a respected sporting school, where his cricket could develop the most. That’s exactly what happened. “There were a few matches where I took all 10 wickets,” Parnell says. After a string of good performances Parnell decided cricket was where his future firmly lay. The only hurdle in his path was a logistical one. Parnell was unable to attend some of the practices for the Eastern Province team because his parents’ house was too far away from St George’s Park. A solution was not far away, though. “My English teacher, Lyn Sjoberg, suggested I move in with her, since her children were not living at home anymore, and she only lived about three minutes from the stadium,” Parnell says. “So that’s what I did.”The move was fruitful, and soon Parnell earned a first-class call-up to the Eastern Province side. From there his U-19 success followed and he was selected to play for the South African Emerging side in Australia late last year. Parnell’s record in first-class cricket is not very glamorous: he has taken 37 wickets at an average of 31.29 and has a batting average of 20.23. The longer version of the game is not Parnell’s focus at the moment, and he’s made no secret of his enjoyment for limited-overs cricket. “I prefer the shorter version of the game,” he says, “especially since I haven’t played that many first-class games.”

His voice changes when he speaks of his most special memory of the 2008 Under-19 World Cup. The serious Parnell becomes reminiscent, like a young child recalling his favourite ice-cream

Parnell and his Warriors team mate Lonwabo Tsotsobe, another left-arm seamer, were called up to South Africa’s ODI side to face Australia in January this year. Both had mediocre performances Down Under, but an injury to Tsotsobe paved the way for Parnell to establish himself as the first-choice left-arm pacer in the South African line-up. He shared the new ball with Dale Steyn in the home ODI series against Australia, and that’s where he announced his arrival. In the second ODI, in Centurion, Parnell ripped through the Australian attack, taking four for 25, including the wicket he regards as his most prized. “Michael Hussey’s wicket is the best I have taken so far. All my team-mates tell me it should be Ricky Ponting, but I’ve always thought of Hussey as a really good batsman, so that’s my most valuable wicket.”Parnell finished the series having earned himself a place in South Africa’s World Twenty20 squad. He had played in England before, on a school tour, and went into the competition confident of his ability. “The wickets are softer in England, so the ball swings more, and I can use that to my advantage.” Yusuf Abdulla’s success for Kings XI Punjab in the IPL may have given the selectors a pleasant dilemma in deciding which left-arm seam bowler to opt for, and going by the results so far, they will be pleased with their decision.Just like Nehra, Parnell is starting to make the ball dance to his own tune. His bowling at the death has been deadly. He whipped out the big guns against England and West Indies, taking 3 for 14 and 4 for 13. In the six matches Parnell has played in the World Twenty20, he has taken 10 wickets, at an average of 16.60. More importantly, he has achieved his goal of cementing his place in South Africa’s limited-overs side. Perhaps it’s Nehra who will start watching Parnell from now on.

Traditional virtues to the fore at Edgbaston where champions battle for supremacy

David Hopps28-Apr-2023

Patience and persistence are still necessary attributes when it comes to winning the LV= County Championship and both Surrey and Warwickshire had those qualities in abundance at Edgbaston. It was a day of toil, a serious-minded affair between arguably the most tough-minded sides around and, at the close of the second day, it was Surrey who had stolen a slight advantage.Surrey, the defending champions, led by 61 runs with two wickets remaining as they sought to assert themselves against the county that took the pennant the season before. There would be some tired minds and bodies at the end of a day that illustrated that county players do not always throw the bat fatalistically when conditions are in the seam bowlers’ favour.Superficially spindly, yet physically threatening when there is sap in the pitch, Ollie Hannon-Dalby spearheaded Warwickshire’s seam attack on an engrossing day when everybody was on their mettle. Hannon-Dalby, closely cropped now, jogs in with his right arm outstretched as if he is carrying a little wicker bread basket, but opposing batters have long learned to sense danger and a wicket in the final over – the only one with the second new ball – left him with 3 for 29 in 14.3 overs.It was Jamie Smith, the most ambitious of Surrey’s batters, who finally shifted the match in his side’s favour. He remained unbeaten on 57 by the close and upped the tempo in a sunnier final session in discerning fashion.”I thought we bowled pretty well all day,” Hannon-Dalby said. “We know that here at Edgbaston, day two, if the sun is out generally it is a nice time to bat. They bowled brilliantly yesterday, albeit in helpful conditions, so we just had to try to emulate them.”Surrey’s captain, Rory Burns has won only three of his last 17 tosses, so he will not apologise for the slight advantage that winning this one has given his side. Seam-bowling conditions were ideal on the opening day, but even when blue skies broke out in the final session, there was still assistance to be had and the favour in bowling first was not excessive. Smith played well.The path had been laid by many who went before, firstly Burns, who was quite perky in making 32 from 81 balls, looking as if he is perching on the edge of a toilet seat as the bowler approaches and then springing up as the bowler delivers, as if rudely interrupted, which he eventually was by an inswinger from Chris Rushworth which had him palpably lbw.Ben Foakes continued the good work, the sober side of dapper as he reached 39 from 100 balls before he fell tamely against Hannon-Dalby with a leading edge to short midwicket as he tried to clip him through the leg side. “The longer I batted, the worse I got,” Foakes said. This has not been a pitch that becomes gentler on a batter the longer they stay, which makes Smith’s easeful innings all the more impressive.An hour’s delay for a wet outfield did not help Warwickshire. The clouds had begun to lighten by the time Surrey had taken the last two wickets and begun their reply. sang Flanders and Swann, and they were no kinder about the rest of the months that make up the English climate either, but perhaps this miserable start to the season is finally beginning to ease up. Somebody may have even risked taking a coat off in the afternoon.Warwickshire’s bowlers held their discipline. Rushworth brought Dom Sibley’s return to Edgbaston to an early end with the assistance of Rob Yates at slip and Hasan Ali’s second ball trapped Ollie Pope lbw. When Ryan Patel edged Hannon-Dalby to second slip it was 99 for 4 and the match was finely balanced, but Smith wrested the initiative until two wickets in the last two overs rewarded Warwickshire’s discipline.Chris Woakes had reported “a good kind of hurt” after completing his first Championship match for a year against Kent and he beat the bat enough to have been frustrated to have endured a wicketless day.It is typical of Woakes that he is seeking to win an Ashes place, at 34, with hard work. Jofra Archer has good reason not to fancy such a laborious route. He has been laid low with elbow trouble for more than two years now and might well have to take a view on the longer formats if his condition does not improve.Archer feels so vulnerable that when his secret visit to a Belgian clinic for a minor elbow procedure was reported this week, he appeared to complain on Twitter that such information should not be revealed without his express approval. Client journalism might well be growing, especially in the field of elite sport, but even if he wins the Ashes with 10 wickets in every innings, he will not have exclusive rights to everything written about him.

The Cityzens have refreshed their squad but doubts remain over their ability to finish top of an ever-more competitive pile

Manchester City fans used to sing "City are back, whoa, whoa" when the team's fortunes began to look up after a period in the doldrums but the chant has been heard less and less amid the seemingly never-ending cycle of success of the last 12 years. However, last year's disappointing season, which Erling Haaland called "horrific" and "boring", has seen the motto return.

It was how the club marketed their recent open training session, and if Pep Guardiola's side get off to a good start this season you can bet those three words will reverberate around the Etihad Stadium and in away sections. There is certainly a huge desire among City players to make a statement after last season, when they finished outside the top two for the first time since 2017 and also failed to win a trophy for the first time in eight years.

"Definitely, I think everyone wants to make up for last season, we all want to come to our best and winning titles," said Phil Foden. "We have got all the experience and we have done it before. That’s a positive when you have done it before, you know how to do it and what it takes so hopefully we can get back there."

But have City really strengthened enough to get back to what they used to be?

Getty Images SportMood around the Etihad

Despite all the success they have had over the last 12 years, City fans are naturally pessimistic and the general feeling is that regaining their title will be extremely difficult. The drop-off from last season is still fresh in the memory and the competition has never been more fierce. 

Although some exciting new recruits have arrived, they pale in comparison to the scale of the influx of top talent at Liverpool, while Arsenal have been growing more consistent and have at last added a top striker to their ranks with Viktor Gyokeres. It is hard to imagine that City will not miss Kevin De Bruyne's ability to conjure something out of nothing and how well they do will also inevitably rest on whether Rodri returns to his best, which is far from guaranteed after suffering such a brutal injury last year and then hurting his groin in June.

The mood among players, though, is clear. They have not forgotten what happened last season and the only way to make things better is to stage a resurgence. "There's a lot of guilt among the players, in the manager, in everyone for not doing better last season," said new captain Bernardo Silva. "A team with our experience, with our quality, even with the injuries, we cannot go down as easily as we did. We should have done better to overcome this situation. About competing for the title, we didn't even give it a try."

But the Portuguese midfielder, who could be heading into the final stage of his nine-year career with City as he runs down his contract, also stressed that things will be different. "I think emotional-wise we're definitely back. In terms of being hungry again, we're back."

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City's new sporting director Hugo Viana has certainly not been shy about making his presence felt since switching over from Sporting CP to replace Txiki Begiristain. The Portuguese has made five signings in the summer to the tune of £153 million ($206m), after Begiristain bowed out of his final transfer window in January by splurging £180m.

Tijjani Reijnders, who joined from AC Milan for £46m, is an energetic box-to-box merchant who looks set to score many goals. Rayan Ait-Nouri, a smart £31m buy from Wolves, will make the team much more threatening out wide even if he might lead to them ceding possession more often. 

Rayan Cherki has a licence to thrill but his uneven career progression since making his debut for Lyon aged 16 invites some caution. He felt like a slightly underwhelming successor to Kevin De Bruyne after he left following a golden decade at the club and later joined Napoli as a free agent. There is little risk with Cherki though as he only cost £30m.

City have bought two new goalkeepers in third-choice Marcus Bettinelli from Chelsea and James Trafford, who has rejoined the club from Burnley for £27m. Trafford has vowed to battle Ederson for the No. 1 jersey, although there is still a chance that the Brazilian departs for Galatasaray and talks taking place with Paris Saint-Germain over Gianluigi Donnarumma. Norwegian teenager Sverre Nypan's £12.5m switch from Rosenborg has flown under the radar, largely because he is expected to be sent out on loan right away.
As well as De Bruyne's departure, it has been something of the end of an era for City's treble winners as Jack Grealish has moved to Everton on loan while Kyle Walker has also departed, for Burnley after a mixed loan spell at AC Milan. James McAtee is expected to also leave permanently for Nottingham Forest, bringing in £30m in pure profit as an academy graduate. 

Yan Couto and Maximo Perrone have made permanent moves to Borussia Dortmund and Como respectively after spending last season on loan. January arrival Vitor Reis has gone on loan to Girona while Juma Bah, who is yet to play for City, has gone out on loan to Nice after previously playing for Lens. Goalkeeper Scott Carson has left City after four years in which he made just two appearances. Savinho could yet join the exodus after Tottenham opened talks with City over the Brazilian winger.

Getty ImagesPre-season performances

City have had highly unusual preparations for the coming season due to their participation in the Club World Cup in June. They treated the rebooted tournament a bit like a pre-season tour, with Guardiola rotating his side between matches and still seeing City top their group by winning three games. But their campaign came crashing down in the last 16 when Joao Cancelo's Al-Hilal beat them 4-3 in an extra-time thriller.

City's early exit to the SPL side was embarrassing given they were one of the favourites to win the competition while Rodri picking up a groin injury – which derailed his progress after missing almost the entire season with a torn cruciate ligament – rubbed salt into the wounds. The silver lining was that they got to take their break earlier and had an extra two weeks to prepare for the campaign than if they had reached the final. 

Guardiola's side only returned to training on July 28 and the only glimpse fans have had of them was in their opening training session and in their friendly against Serie B side Palermo, who also belong to the CFC stable. They easily beat the Italians 3-0, with Reijnders playing a starring role and netting twice after a first-half strike from Erling Haaland. The Norwegian scored in four of the five matches, firing another ominous warning to defences ahead of the new campaign.

Jeremy Doku looked lethal during the Club World Cup while Ait-Nouri impressed too. Foden also took a step back towards his best in the U.S., scoring three times and getting an assist despite only starting one match. But an ankle knock in training prevented him from facing Palermo and could lead to him missing the opener at Wolves along with Rodri and Mateo Kovacic.

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GettyTalking tactics

Guardiola admitted last season that he had delayed overhauling his squad out of loyalty to the players who had won so much with him only to admit the error of his ways. He has also revealed that feeling a sense of responsibility for the team's problems last years is what motivated him to sign a two-year contract last November, explaining: "I didn't want to let the club down."

There is not a single City fan who does not believe Guardiola is still the right man for the job and it is worth remembering that the year after that drab 2016-17 campaign, the Catalan's first in England, City swept to the title by amassing 100 points. And the last time they surrendered their Premier League crown, in 2020, they ended up going on a historical winning streak of four consecutive titles. 

And yet there is also a sense that Guardiola is exhausted and on the brink of burn out. Remember how he scratched his head so hard that it left him with scars during the 3-3 draw with Feyenoord. He underwent surgery in 2023 to treat a back problem that he had suffered from for 12 years although he stressed in a recent eye-opening interview with that the most important thing is his mentality, saying "the mind is everything". 

It was a little bit concerning, then, to hear him also say: "The job of a coach, and I'm not just talking about myself, but all my colleagues, is a 24/7 one. Otherwise, you can't do it. The weight on your shoulders is enormous. You have a responsibility to a lot of people who put their trust in you: the players, the president, the sporting director. It's that fear of letting them down that drives me."

Guardiola is constantly evolving and it will be intriguing to see whether the arrival of Ait-Nouri makes him embrace high-flying full-backs again after moving towards inverted, more narrow full-backs. How he seeks to get the best out of Haaland will be another fascinating subplot, particularly with a new cast of players brought in to help feed the Norwegian goal machine.

The head coach has freshened up his team of support staff, recruiting Jurgen Klopp's former number two Pep Lijnders and another former Liverpool employee in set-piece specialist James French. Former City defender Kolo Toure has also joined as an assistant coach.