'Just the beginning of drastic' Man City rebuild

When the January transfer window arrives, very few Manchester City fans get their hopes up when it comes to new faces coming straight into Pep Guardiola's first-team.

However, off the back of a torrid run of form that has largely seen City exit the race for a fifth consecutive Premier League title, and languish towards the bottom of the Champions League, the club hierarchy knew they had to get to work on the next generation of Guardiola's side.

That is exactly what has happened.

Saturday evening gave us our first glimpse into the future and, the opening five minutes aside, you can see exactly why Txiki Begiristain and his colleagues invested so heavily in Abdukodir Khusanov and Omar Marmoush.

The 20-year-old Uzbek brought exactly what was anticipated - a somewhat raw and developing defender who shone in French football and will have no problem getting to grips with the English game's physicality, speed, and unpredictability.

His desire to get involved in tackling and shoulder-to-shoulder battles will make him a firm fan favourite at City for years to come. That started immediately with the emphatic show of support for Khusanov after a difficult opening 54 minutes.

Then there's Marmoush - the Bundesliga's "best player", in the words of Begiristain. Hardly short of confidence, sharp in attacking phases, an eye for goal and bringing exactly the sort of fresh impetus that this existing crop of players desperately needed. It will help keep their season alive and drive them into a new era after the campaign comes to a close.

This is just the beginning of a drastic and much-needed rebuild. It is certainly exciting and a firm reminder that Guardiola's vision will remain for years to come, perhaps long beyond the reign of the Catalan mastermind.

Find more from Freddie Pye at City Xtra