Man City's most influential players of the Sheikh Mansour era ranked

Manchester City players and staff are due to return to training at the CFA on Friday for their first sessions in over two months.

The takeover of Manchester City by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment and Development Limited on September 1, 2008 changed the history of the club and English football.

Manchester City fans, for the most part, have fond memories of Roberto Mancini. He is remembered for his delirious celebrations on the final day of the 2011-12 season when Sergio Aguero’s late, late goal against QPR gave his side the Premier League title.

Manchester City players were back at the training ground today as the Premier League steps up plans to return.

Raheem Sterling is not always right and does not always say the correct thing. Just because he says footballers will need four to five weeks to be prepared for competitive games again, it does not mean that is the absolute minimum required - he himself suggested two to three weeks not so long ago.

In Manchester City’s storied history stretching back over 140 years, there have been some epic arguments, upsets and feuds.

Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan has failed to include a single teammate or even a Premier League player in his all-time best XI.

Pep Guardiola has proved again that he has his finger firmly on the pulse of the game.

While Kevin de Bruyne and Raheem Sterling are among the revered superstars at Manchester City, the club’s talent pool runs much deeper than the regulars in Pep Guardiola’s matchday squad.

Manchester City are reportedly interested in signing Paris Saint-Germain’s 17-year-old central midfielder Edouard Michut, according to Sky Sports.

Last week, former Manchester City and Liverpool player Craig Bellamy made a dismissive claim in relation to Manchester United’s prospects of closing in on the division’s top two sides.

Manchester City players, like all footballers, have been handicapped by being unable to train together.

Leroy Sane looks increasingly likely to join Bayern Munich this summer, with Manchester City understood to be happy to sell the want-away German winger at the right price.

The current incarnation of Manchester City is almost unrecognisable from the one that embarked on the club’s first Premier League season under Peter Reid in 1992. Football has changed dramatically in that time, and City even more so.

The Abu Dhabi-led takeover of Manchester City in 2008 changed the landscape of the Premier League forever as the oil billions of the Gulf state gave the club the resources to shop from the top shelf of the transfer market.

Pablo Zabaleta has revealed that Manchester City players were dreaming of seeing Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi sign for the club after the 2008 takeover.

The buzz-cut hairstyle has come roaring back into popularity in recent weeks due to lockdown, but Manchester City duo John Stones and Bernardo Silva won't be able to shave their heads due to an ill-timed bet they made with each other.

Every manager in the Premier League, perhaps barring Jurgen Klopp, looks at Manchester City’s midfield with envy.

Transfer windows are littered with plenty of hellos and goodbyes, and players we once cheered on can quickly become a distant memory as our gaze focuses on the new arrivals.

Last summer, Manchester City rewarded two fringe players with significant squad numbers to recognise their hard work during the previous two campaigns.