'Have to' - The transfers Man City must make in January window

• Sport
• Football
• Manchester City Transfer News

Manchester City will be active in the January transfer window but how much they do remains to be seen

Manchester City don't have to make any transfers this January - and that includes Antoine Semenyo. That is the position of strength that they can enter the winter market in.

City spent heavily this time last year and did the same in summer, doing the bulk of the rebuilding of a squad that had mostly been together since 2017. Those players quickly knitted together to leave City in second place in the Premier League and fourth in the Champions League table heading into 2026.

Not that they will, but Pep Guardiola will take great satisfaction from the thought that if they win all of their remaining league games they will clinch yet another title. They also need around four points from matches with Bodo (A) and Galatasaray (H) to progress further in Europe than they did last season and will be confident of achieving that.

All of that has been done with the squad they have, and while there has been a reliance on 12 or 13 players, the rise of Cherki has shown that the group dynamic can change or swell. Omar Marmoush and Rayan Ait-Nouri should contribute once they return from the Africa Cup of Nations, while there is a genuine hope that Rodri can play a real part in the second half of the season.

That being said, there are opportunities to improve the squad and Semenyo is the prime example. The decision was made from the Bournemouth forward for January to be his point of exit and City have stepped up their efforts to sign him over recent weeks and are hopeful that they have won the race.

Semenyo's arrival looks set to trigger a departure - Oscar Bobb is likely to leave this month, even if it initially only on loan - and City will have to be alive to other situations. Nathan Ake could look to move given he has made just one league start since August, while Marc Guehi and Palace could be open to a January move given the defender currently has just six months remaining on his deal.

Overall though, any transfers City do make will be done from a point of opportunity rather than necessity. They have built the foundations to challenge for multiple trophies this season and there is nothing that points towards a dramatic drop-off whatever happens in January.