After a shocking run of form to end 2024 on a big low, Manchester City have decided to splash the case in the January transfer window. They have already splurged close to €150 million this week, with about half of that amount spent on Egyptian forward Omar Marmoush.
By Neel Shelat
Omar Marmoush joins a growing list of big-money forward departures from Eintracht Frankfurt. In recent years, the Eagles have sold Sébastien Haller to West Ham for €50 million, Luka Jović to Real Madrid for €63m and Randal Kolo-Muani to Paris Saint-Germain for a club-record €95m. All three of the others certainly have not proven to be worth their transfer fees, but Manchester City will be counting on Marmoush to break that trend.
Scintillating form this season
It is safe to say that Manchester City are signing Marmoush in the midst of what is by far his best-ever footballing season. The 25-year-old forward has registered an incredible tally of 20 goals and 13 assists in just 26 appearances for Eintracht Frankfurt this term, including 24 goal involvements in the Bundesliga.
While the English champions will be more than delighted if he continues such a run of form in Manchester, the flip side to this is that they have had to pay something of a premium for him. As it is, mid-season transfers tend to be financially favourable to the selling team, but Marmoush’s value was further inflated by his sensational attacking output.
Of course, money isn’t a big problem for Manchester City, so the main thing they will be concerned with is whether his form will carry over to the Premier League. The fact that the Egyptian forward failed to register 10 senior goal involvements in any season outside Frankfurt might be considered a concern, but much of that can be chalked up to constant loans and transfers that prevented him from fully settling in anywhere.
With that being said, it is also pretty unlikely that Marmoush will continue scoring at a rate of almost a goal per 90 minutes. For one, his 15 league goals this season have come with some significant xG performance. While he does deserve credit for finishing very well, it is worth noting that he failed to outperform his xG in any of his previous top-flight seasons.
A big reason behind Marmoush’s explosive return this season is Eintracht Frankfurt’s tactical setup. Dino Toppmöller has been employing a very fluid attacking system that deals the vast majority of its damage in transition, with the front two of Marmoush and Hugo Ekitike being given a great deal of freedom to drift around and pull opposition defences apart. The Egyptian forward certainly made the most of his role, showcasing the best of his speedy dribbling, snappy link-up play and clever off-ball movement to star as an all-action forward.
Potential fit at Manchester City
Quite certainly, Marmoush will find himself in a very different tactical context at Manchester City compared to Eintracht Frankfurt. Pep Guardiola’s side, of course, like to try and control matches by keeping a lot more slow possession, so their attack isn’t half as fluid as the Eagles’.
Nevertheless, the Egyptian forward should be able to slot into Guardiola’s system through multiple routes. In his matches with the national team as well as at previous clubs, Marmoush has shown himself capable of playing in all the forward positions.
Of course, the striker position at Manchester City will ideally remain off-limits for everyone other than Erling Haaland for the next decade or so, so Marmoush will have to make a place for himself behind him. Looking at City’s squad, all three positions could be open in the short and/or long term. The ageing Kevin De Bruyne does not have a clear successor in the number 10 position, so Marmoush could either do that job or move over to the right and free up Phil Foden into a central role for good. Alternatively, the Egyptian attacker could start on the left, from where he can cut inside onto his favoured right foot.
Marmoush definitely would not be best utilised as a wide winger who hugs the touchline, so he will want to get into central areas regardless of where he starts. In this respect, he could turn out to be something of a delayed replacement for Julián Alvarez, whose summer transfer to Atlético Madrid had a more adverse effect on Manchester City’s attack than they would have liked.
Although the Premier League holders still have one of the biggest goal tallies in the league, they have become quite overreliant on Haaland for their goals and have no clear plan B. This has made them far more predictable and easier to defend against in many cases, so City will really hope to see Marmoush inject some much-needed dynamism in the opposition half.
In recent matches including their big win over Ipswich Town and loss to Paris Saint-Germain, Guardiola’s side have seemed to lean into attacking transitions a fair bit more than they used to. So, the team could also adapt a little and meet Marmoush closer to the middle rather than expecting him to integrate into a rigid system.
Bigger issues to solve for City
While Marmoush may well get Manchester City’s attack firing in full flow again, they have bigger problems to contend with.
The root of their issues this season, of course, stemmed from Rodri’s ACL injury. Their lack of quality depth in defensive midfield has consistently been the biggest weak link in the side ever since, and they are yet to address it in the transfer window.
The English champions have, however, made a couple of other smart signings. The arrivals of young defenders Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis add some much-needed youthfulness into an especially ageing back line and squad as a whole. Both players also have the potential to become the best in their position a few years down the line.
The 25-year-old Marmoush definitely will be expected to provide a much more instant impact, perhaps even buying time for Manchester City to work on the bigger issues. So, a lot will rest on how quickly and smoothly he is integrated into Guardiola’s side.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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