Enzo Maresca will choose Manchester City captain and wants English presence in leadership group

Enzo Maresca will choose his own Manchester City captain for next season and is looking to appoint an English player to his leadership group.

Maresca will make the decision on who to replace Bernardo Silva as captain after the Portugal international left the club in the summer, joining Real Madrid on a free transfer.

Former City boss Pep Guardiola let the players vote for their captain for the majority of his 10 years at the Etihad Stadium, but personally chose a four-man group last summer, with Bernardo as captain, backed up by Ruben Dias, Erling Haaland and Rodri.

Dias is in the frame to take the armband for next season, although sources with knowledge of the process say that a final decision is yet to be made.

Dias is in the frame to be named City’s permanent captain (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

Maresca is also aware that he may have to replace Rodri in the group, should the Spain international complete a move to Barcelona this summer.

Barca had a bid worth around £38million plus add-ons rejected on Friday after it emerged that the 30-year-old favours a move to Camp Nou rather than Real Madrid, who had also been trying to sign him.

City had long been aware that Rodri could move on this summer, with the midfielder indicating as early as the beginning of last season that he was not considering a contract extension at the club.

Should he leave this summer, then Maresca would need to promote two players, at least, to a four-man leadership group.

The Italian is keen for a homegrown presence, which is likely to mean Phil Foden or Marc Guehi being given extra responsibilities.

Foden stated last week that he felt he needed to be in those kind of conversations given the 26-year-old is one of only six players still at the club from the 2022-23 treble-winning season.

“Obviously I have been in the club for so long, I am one of the last remaining players to have been here for a long time,” the City academy graduate said. “So I think I have to be this season, one of the leaders, one of the captains or in and around it for sure.”

Guehi, meanwhile, was Crystal Palace’s captain for the 18 months prior to his January move to City, and has worn the armband for England.