Hugo Viana has proved Txiki Begiristain right during first Man City transfer window

Manchester City have said farewell to Txiki Begiristain but what he said about his replacement Hugo Viana is already looking accurate.

Hugo Viana watches Manchester City train with Txiki Begiristain

There are plenty of Manchester City players and insiders who would agree with Txiki Begiristain's description of the man replacing him as the key decision-maker at the Etihad.

In a new City+ film celebrating the end of Begiristain's 13-year tenure as the club's director of football, the conversation soon turns to the man replacing him, the 42-year-old Hugo Viana.

Former Barcelona executive Begiristain laid the groundwork for much of City's success in the last decade, but his decision to stand down made change inevitable this summer, and Viana was the man tasked with enacting it.

The handover came at an interesting time, with Viana taking the controls at a time when the relentless winning machine built by Begiristain and Pep Guardiola was starting to cough and splutter.

It was Begiristain who began the transformation in January and Viana who has continued it this summer, spending £180million on seven new signings and waving goodbye to some key stalwarts from recent times.

In A Farewell to Txiki, Begiristain says of Viana: "Good guy, also calm. I can see, you know, that a young, energetic sporting director comes in and he is not scared about taking decisions."

Viana certainly isn't scared of making the big decisions. After getting his feet under the table earlier in the year, one of his first big calls was to end Kevin De Bruyne's City career, much to the Belgian's chagrin. De Bruyne was one of six treble winners to say their goodbyes this summer, including three on deadline day.

Maybe Viana's freshness is exactly what was needed at City. The former Sporting director of football isn't emotionally connected to a group of players who have achieved so much together under Guardiola. He is bringing a new set of eyes to the squad, as well as a coldness and detachment from the previous era, which is allowing him to be ruthless.

Chief executive Ferran Soriano believes Viana has already settled nicely in the role and highlighted some of the same qualities as Begiristain.

“He’s decisive? Yes. He gets along well with people? Yes. He’s calm? Extremely calm. Well, maybe we have the new Txiki,” Soriano said.

“His integration with the group has been seamless. He’s one of us, and I think that’s the perfect outcome.”

Viana has plenty on his plate at the moment. Rico Lewis earned himself a new contract this summer, and Viana, a former Premier League player with Newcastle, has decisions to make and negotiations to enter over new deals for John Stones, who is in the final year of his contract, and Rodri, who has two years left on his current deal.

Players will examine Viana's handling of those renewals to gauge his approach to talks and the club's future. He also faces the headache of finding a replacement for Guardiola when he decides to leave, which currently looks likely at the end of his contract in 2027.

But after a busy window of change, City at least have an idea of what Viana is like now, and Begiristain's description seems a good place to start.

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