Pep Guardiola could blood new signings with Rayan Cherki ‘impatient to play’

Manchester City could have a fresh look as they begin their challenge at the Club World Cup on Wednesday.

Pep Guardiola’s side enter the maligned tournament in the United States as they take on Moroccan side Wydad Casablanca in their Group G opener Philadelphia.

The game brings manager Pep Guardiola an early opportunity to blood his latest signings after the club continued their squad overhaul by bringing in four new players last week.

Rayan Ait-Nouri, Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders and Marcus Bettinelli arrived at a combined cost of £108million and immediately joined up with the squad to travel to the US.

Those deals came after Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez, Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis were brought in in January amid an underwhelming 2024-25 campaign.

Third-choice goalkeeper Bettinelli aside, the new faces are in line to make debuts at Lincoln Financial Field in a game that kicks off at midday local time.

With Kevin De Bruyne having now departed and Jack Grealish not with the squad and facing an uncertain future at the club, the next phase of City’s transition looks set to get under way.

Guardiola has continually referred to the Club World Cup as the start of 2025-26, rather than the end of the last trophyless season, and Cherki, for one, is anxious to get going.

“He’s the best coach in the world, and I think he’s the best coach in history,” said the France midfielder in an interview released by the club after his signing.

“To work for him is an honour for me and I’m impatient to play.”

City are the defending champions at the Club World Cup having won it in its old guise in December 2023 before its dramatic rebranding as a 32-team, month-long tournament this summer.

Cherki said: “This cup is a new cup and we want to win. It is every four years and I want the team to win because it’s the first time in history.”

City have based themselves near Miami for the tournament and were due to head to Philadelphia on Tuesday. Guardiola was scheduled to hold a press conference at 11.45pm BST.

City have further group games against Al Ain of Abu Dhabi in Atlanta and Juventus in Orlando.