Enzo Maresca ignores record Man City and Man United spending in 'crazy' transfer market

Enzo Maresca heads into his first Manchester derby as City manager with one central message: he pays no attention to what his signings cost. The Italian boss, whose club committed more than £400m to new arrivals this summer, considers the current market to be completely crazy and prefers to assess players on their output rather than the money spent on them.

Record fees and a 'crazy' transfer market

City equalled the British transfer record by paying £125m for Enzo Fernandez, having already spent £116m on Elliot Anderson. They also added Morocco international Ayyoub Bouaddi to the midfield. Across those three players alone, the club invested £301m during Maresca's first window in charge.

Despite those staggering figures, the manager stays detached from the numbers: "I don't pay much attention to the price because I don't pay the money. It's more about good players," Maresca said ahead of Sunday's clash.

Rebuilding the Manchester City midfield

Maresca faced a monumental challenge this summer: replacing Rodri and Bernardo Silva, two pillars of the club's recent golden era. The response was emphatic, with three top-level arrivals for the centre of the pitch.

The manager feels fortunate to have Fernandez, Anderson and Bouaddi in the same squad. But his perspective goes beyond the present: he believes this club has already shown a unique ability to replace its legends without the team suffering.

Replacing great players: the club's defining strength

The Italian pointed to several examples from recent history to explain why he trusts the process. "When Aguero left, everyone was worried and Erling Haaland arrived. When Fernandinho left, Rodri arrived. When David Silva left, De Bruyne arrived," Maresca listed.

That capacity for regeneration is, in his view, one of the club's greatest achievements. First under Txiki Begiristain and now with Hugo Viana in charge of football operations, City have turned generational transitions into something close to an exact science. "It's not easy to replace these kind of players, they are top players," he admitted.

Manchester United's midfield signings and the spending gap

Sunday's opponents were not idle in the market either. Manchester United brought in three midfielders this summer for an initial outlay of £148m, a considerably smaller figure than what their city rivals spent in the same area of the pitch.

Maresca does not read that gap as a sign of superiority or inferiority. "The ones who arrived here and joined United are all top players. That's the most important thing," he said.

Maresca's first Manchester derby: what is at stake

Sunday's match at Old Trafford marks Maresca's debut in Manchester's greatest rivalry. For City, claiming all three points is vital in the Premier League title race. For United, beating their neighbours always delivers a statement, regardless of the league table.

With both clubs freshly rebuilt in midfield, the game will also serve as a barometer for who got their summer business right. Maresca, however, prefers to leave the calculators out of the dressing room: his measuring stick is the pitch.