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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Sport
Luke Jennings

Richard Dunne weighs in on Man City's transfer dealings

Richard Dunne gave a controversial take on the reason players sign for Manchester City over other clubs in the transfer market.

Man City beat Champions League holders Real Madrid 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium last night, which resulted in a 5-1 aggregate win as they'll now face Inter Milan in the final next month.

The former Ireland player highlighted Pep Guardiola as the "biggest draw" as he improves players and increases their transfer value.

Dunne, however, admitted City don't always get it right but acknowledged that will always be the case in football.

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The 43-year-old claimed Jack Grealish's transfer value has increased since his £100million move from Aston Villa in 2021.

"If you look at the squad, Jack Grealish was maybe the only one that other teams couldn't compete with because he was a £100million and probably wasn't worth £100 million at the time. Man City have turned him into a player now worth more.

"If you go through the rest of the squad, there is nobody that Manchester United, Chelsea, or Liverpool couldn't afford.

"Man City have got a plan with how they recruit people, how they do it, and what type of people they want for each position."

Dunne then referenced the signing of Julian Alvarez, who was within the price bracket of other Premier League clubs but chose Man City.

Erling Haaland can only play one position, according to Dunne, but the pull of playing under Guardiola edged him to move to the blue side of Manchester.

"You look at someone like Julian Alvarez, he came in for £15 million and would be affordable for the whole Premier League and most of Europe, but City were the ones that went out and got him," Dunne added.

"The biggest draw to Man City is Pep Guardiola, all the players want to play for him. The way he has evolved this team, even over this season, has been incredible.

"I think what has helped him has been the signing of Haaland. Haaland can play one position and one style, so it restricts how much he can change the attack."

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