It's all change in the Manchester City midfield this summer, as influential captain Ilkay Gundogan departs and a four-time Champions League winner arrives.
Gundogan has called time on his seven-year stay in Manchester, opting to join Barcelona rather than extend his stay at City. The Blues have moved quickly to sign his replacement, with Chelsea's Mateo Kovacic set to arrive after the clubs agreed a £25m fee for the Croatian.
Reports also suggest that City will table an opening offer for Declan Rice on Thursday, although while there is an interest in the West Ham man, it's thought that talk of a bid may be a little premature, and Arsenal remain interested having bid twice themselves.
Still, with Guardiola trialling various midfield options throughout the season, and two top-class Premier League midfielders potentially coming in, City's midfield could have multiple options for the manager to experiment with over the 2023/24 season.
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To start, Rodri is a main-stay in defensive midfield, and with Gundogan going, Kovacic could partner Kevin De Bruyne in a full-strength midfield trio. Bernardo Silva can also play in the midfield three, although he is linked with a summer exit too.
The arrival of Kovacic, and interest in Rice, throws up a question over Kalvin Phillips. The England midfielder has failed to impress in his first year at City, but insists he wants to fight for his place next season and kick on. He would naturally be an alternative for Rodri in what will be a gruelling season across seven competitions.
However, should Rice come in, he would also be an alternative option to Rodri as he plays defensive midfield for West Ham. There is potential for a double-pivot, once a dreaded tactic among City fans, alongside either Rodri or Phillips - or maybe even Kovacic. Phillips and Rice struck up a good partnership at the base of midfield for England between 2021 and 2022, which could unlock an avenue for Phillips to rediscover his best form.
Guardiola has also used Julian Alvarez as a number ten when De Bruyne hasn't played, spearheading a midfield, while Cole Palmer has been used inside. If Palmer stays he could be a midfield option again, or so could James McAtee if the decision is made to keep him at the Etihad after an impressive loan spell at Sheffield United.
Then there are the players Guardiola experimented with in midfield throughout the season. Phil Foden ended the season playing centrally in the Champions League final, as well as for a couple of Premier League games before that. Midfield appears to be his long-term position, and next season that would be a logical progression for him, if there are enough opportunities to play there.
Similarly, John Stones bossed the midfield against Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Real Madrid and Inter Milan, pushing up from defence. He partnered Rodri well in possession, and it would be a shame to waste that evolution by moving him back to a purely defensive role.
Credit, too, should go to the likes of Rico Lewis, Manu Akanji and Nathan Ake, who all played the inverted full-back throughout the season. Should Joao Cancelo make an unlikely return, could he be asked to push into the midfield?
With so many players capable of playing centrally, there are seemingly endless combinations of midfield trios - especially if Rice signs as well as Kovacic.
