Manchester City best 11 of all time
Manchester City all time XI? Best Manchester City best 11 of all time? Best Manchester City XI of all time? Here we look through the archives and select for you the best Manchester City XI of all-time!
While a vast majority of the best players would have been from the Sheikh era (due to much more money) we will also select some of the best Manchester City players from before Sheikhs.
Best Manchester City XI of all time
Players such as Paul Power and Shaun Goater are synonymous with the image of Manchester City greatness. Now we will look at and pick who make up the best Manchester City combined XI of all time.
Best Manchester City XI of all time:
We will start with the defenders and goalkeepers:
Goalkeeper – Frank Swift
Frank Swift joined the blues in 1933, with City warding off rivalry from Blackpool. Blackburn, and Bradford City. Swift got his opportunity at Maine Road when best option Len Langford was injured and his substitution, James Nicholls yielded eight to Wolverhampton Wanderers. He supplanted Nicholls and, regardless of yielding four goals on his debut, he kept his first cleansheet sheet the next day.
Swift was essential for the group that played before a 84,569 group at Maine Road when City beat Stoke 1-0 on their approach to winning the FA Cup. He played in the last against Portsmouth, which City won 2-1. He was downbeat at half-time, reprimanding himself for Portsmouth’s goal as he decided not to wear gloves for the match. The keeper blacked out as the last whistle went, as he was so overwhelmed with feeling.
Frank showed up for the blues somewhere in the range of 1933 and 1949, and after football, he proceeded to be a games writer. Unfortunately, Frank Swift was one of the survivors of the Munich air debacle in February 1958, subsequent to writing about United’s European Cup coordinate at Red Star Belgrade.
Right back – Pablo Zabaleta – Best Manchester City XI of all time
The fight had to come down between two legends – one retired from football and one still playing for Manchester City.
Kyle Walker is the man in question here and his competition will have to be City legend Pablo Zabaleta.
Although modern football dictates we choose Kyle Walker, we will prefer to wait and see how Walker reacts as he approaches the flag end of his career to the challenges posed to him by the ever changing Premier League.
The reason behind this is because Pablo Zabaleta was a defensive rock. There was no getting past him one v one in the pacey Premier League but he made it big at City and as a captain not just because of his defensive skills but his ability to adapt to modern attacking football at a big club.
It took him some time but the veteran did master how to not only defend but attack and pass and rotate possession via progression and of course score some killer volleys!
He is by far the best right back not only at City but is also within a shout to be the best right back in the last 15 years in the Premier League.
Center Back – Vincent Kompany – Best Manchester City XI of all time
Vincent Kompany, City’s Player of the Year in 2011, was signed by Mark Hughes for £6 million out of 2008. Without a doubt City’s best defender of the most recent 20 years, Kompany captained the side to their first league title in 44 years in 2012. His career at the Etihad has so far been perfect.
Initially conveyed as a defensive midfield player, Roberto Mancini’s appearance saw him moved to defensive half where the Belgian dominated. He’s presently broadly viewed as one of the best center back in English football to play in England. His exhibitions during City’s FA Cup and Premier League winning efforts were remarkable. His significance to City is underlined by the group’s precariousness in his nonattendance.
Kompany is an ideal cutting edge commander. In addition to the fact that he leads with unique excellence on the pitch, yet he likewise speaks to City splendidly off it, getting known as a well-spoken and insightful media administrator.
He bled blue, converted himself from a defensive midfielder to a center back, learned 5 new style of play under different managers and managed to marshall the team full of superstars to multiple silverware throughout the better part of a decade – that is legend – regardless of his position.
Center back – Richard Dunne – Best Manchester City XI of all time
No rundown of extraordinary City captains would be finished without Richard Dunne, champ of the club’s Player of the Year grant a record four times.
He joined City in 2000 in a £3 million move from Everton. Very quickly he was grasped by the City fans who saw his latent capacity. He was solid, misleadingly speedy and great with the ball at his feet, with a scope of passing that has gone generally unnoticed all through his profession.
He experienced some troublesome periods during his time in a Blue shirt. In 2003, manager Kevin Keegan suspended Dunne for disciplinary reasons, and many felt his time at the club was reaching a conclusion. In any case, that suspension ended up being the defining moment for Dunne who returned undeniably more professional.
Dunne was given the captaincy in the late spring of 2006, and he stayed possessing the armband until his flight.
He played in some helpless City sides however consistently performed with unique excellence, making a club-record 253 Premier League appearances during his nine-year spell. Not many players have been as well known as Richard Dunne is with the City fans.
Left Back – Aleksandr Kolarov – Best Manchester City XI of all time
The answer will be close fight between Gael Clichy and Aleksander Kolarov but the winner will have to be Kolarov.
He was the starting choice left back for 4 City managers and won 2 PL titles, 1 FA Cup and 1 Carling Cup with the team. Kolarov had a killer left foot. He was brilliant going forward as he delivered pin point crosses.
Kolarov knew how to position himself smartly in the box as the ball arrived at the far post. He was also a big threat from the set-pieces and is probably one of the best free kick takers for City ever.
Kolarov has had a phenomenal success rate from his set-pieces. He also did his job and more defensively helping City develop a high press. Kolarov was eventually sold off to AS Roma after the arrival of Pep Guardiola.
The reason behind this was the fact that Pep Guardiola did not rate Kolarov properly and wanted a faster left back. He used Mendy who despite being fast does not have the football acumen of Kolarov.
This has seen Pep suffer a lot of problems down his left hand side while Kolarov has continued to succeed as a left back at AS Roma.
Central Midfield – Paul Power – Best Manchester City XI of all time
Paul Power finished paperwork for City in 1975, playing 365 games for the club during his 11-year remain. He was given the captaincy toward the beginning of the 1979 season.
He will perpetually be associated with his function in City’s rushed to the 1981 FA Cup last. City lost to Spurs in a significant last replay after Power had scored the champ in the semi-last against Bobby Robson’s Ipswich, a side hoping to make sure about a notable high pitch. He likewise drove the club to a League Cup semi-last that season.
He showed up at Wembley multiple times as a City player and furthermore captained them to promotion from the second tier in 1984/85 under the stewardship of Billy McNeill.
He inevitably left in 1986 and joined Everton where he won the title. He scored against City in an Everton shirt and would not celebrate. In a meeting with Stuart Brennan in the Manchester Evening News, Power talked about his torment at seeing the ball hit the rear of the net.
“I kicked the ball and remember thinking ‘save it, save it’, but he didn’t and I scored! I felt awful. I couldn’t celebrate. I knew City were struggling and I couldn’t bear inflicting any pain. Awful.”
Known for the polished methodology and differentiation with which he captained the club, he inevitably returned as an academy mentor yet left after a purge this late spring.
Central Midfield – David Silva – Best Manchester City XI of all time
Mancini spent around £285 million on players during his time accountable for City, however none of it was spent very as admirably as the £24 million he endorsed to sign David Silva. The Spanish playmaker was the heartbeat of the current City side until he left.
Not many players can easily coast around a pitch and direct play very like Silva. Plainly the other City players look to him to make, with his capacity to discover space and string delightful passes to his partners City’s most probable course to an objective.
His best form came during their title winning-effort in 2011/12. A series of phenomenal matches, which saw them hammer sides consistently, will live long in the memory of City fans, and Silva was their star man all through that spell.
The 5-1 success at White Hart Lane, the 6-1 success at Old Trafford: these amazing exhibitions were to a great extent motivated by Silva’s splendor.
His touch, vision, cerebrum and capacity mark him out as a genuine footballing virtuoso. Silva sees things on the pitch that others basically can’t. Like Kinkladze, Berkovic and Benarbia before him, he is a craftsman and an extraordinary player, yet one who additionally drove his side to a group title and FA Cup win.
His place in City’s set of books is now secure.
Central Midfield – Kevin De Bruyne – Best Manchester City XI of all time
The Belgian was a former Chelsea player. He came from Genk to Chelsea at the age of 20 and was largely mishandled by Jose Mourinho, who was the Chelsea boss at that time.
Jose continued to stick with Oscar forcing De Bruyne to seek an exit who ended up going to Germany. Over there he discovered his true potential and was irresistible for Wolfsburg where he made the highest number of assists for two seasons in a row.
It resulted in City breaking the bank for him. However, many were still skeptical about KDB’s ability to shine in the Premier League.
Back in England, with Manchester City, Kevin De Bruyne wreaked havoc. In his spell here for four seasons and a little more, no one has made more goals than him. He also has created the most number of chances, with an impeccable passing accuracy in the final third and a knack for racking goals as well besides assisting his team-mates.
He won the best midfielder in the world award in 2019 and rightly so after his performances were due of a recognition for a long time.
He is now the best player for City and Belgium and also in England.
Left Forward – Shaun Goater – Best Manchester City XI of all time
s far as pound-for-pound signings are concerned, not many in City’s set of experiences can coordinate the worth Shaun Goater gave. He scored 103 goals in 212 games, a momentous profit for City’s £400,000 venture.
He moved to City with seven rounds of the 1997-98 season left, yet couldn’t spare the club from relegation to the third level. Detested by the fans upon appearance, it wasn’t until the accompanying season, where he scored 21 goals and helped City to get promoted at the first run through of asking, that his faction status started to create.
His 29 goals the accompanying effort saw the club accomplish consecutive promotions and take City to the Premier League. It was a radiant two years and The Goat was a central participant.
Unfortunate injuries hampered him in the first class, as he scored only 11 goals during another transfer year, however an amazing 32 in Division One saw the Blues go straight back up.
Not many City players, assuming any, have accomplished a similar sort of worship Goater oversaw during a tempestuous yet splendid five-year spell.
Right Forward – Sergio Aguero – Best Manchester City XI of all time
Although slightly out of position, 186 goals in the Premier League is a record for a non-Englishman. He is by far the best striker EPL has seen in the last decade, not just for City but in all of England.
He has a mean demeanor but is extremely robust. Adding to his strength is his agility and quick feet and a lethal finishing ability. Aguero is famously known for the moment when the scored the winner in a 3-2 win over QPR in the dying seconds of the game to hand Manchester City their first title in 44 years by beating their arch nemesis Manchester United on goal difference in the final league game of the season at Etihad!
The likes of Aguero are definitely PL greats having won multiple golden boots despite many injuries and had he been slightly luckier with those, he might have gotten himself a Ballon d’Or as well.
At the age of 31, he still remains the potent focal point of City’s attack and the man who can decide games at the drop of a hat.
Central Forward – Rodney Marsh – Best Manchester City XI of all time
Yes, he leads the line!
City broke their transfer record in 1972 when they signed Rodney Marsh from Queens Park Rangers, with the club at the top of the table. They completed the season fourth, with many proposing Marsh’s style of play was unsatisfactory to that of his new side.
He proceeded to set up himself as a legend, however, with a combination of goals and footballing expertise. He was a free-soul, a player equipped for snapshots of stunning splendor. He scored 47 goals in 152 games and was important for the side which arrived at the League Cup final in 1974.
See More:
Best Manchester City defenders ever (best left, center & right backs)
Best Manchester City strikers of all time: Man City attacking legends
Best Manchester City midfielders ever (top left, right, central, attacking & defensive)
