Omar Marmoush arrived at Manchester City as a breath of fresh air; a much-needed pop of pace and energy to help revive a meandering 2024-25 campaign.

He is set to depart for Tottenham Hotspur just 18 months later as the latest forward dissatisfied with his game time at the club, simply too talented to accept a back-up role but not impactful enough to carve out a consistent starting spot of their own.

That is not an indictment of Marmoush’s ability. City are built around the freakish goalscoring ability of Erling Haaland, while wide players such as Antoine Semenyo and Jeremy Doku have been specifically recruited to hold width and drive to the byline to create chances for the big Norwegian.

Meanwhile, the likes of Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki drift into pockets of space and pick up the ball in crowded central areas, their technical ability helping them to deal with possession under pressure.

Unable to dislodge Haaland in the No 9 position, the profile of Marmoush — a player at his best when he can attack the space in-behind — does not quite fit the profile of those other attacking roles.

It is a slightly awkward fit and has seen the Egyptian’s involvement dwindle following an early-season injury, racking up just 700 minutes in the Premier League last season. And though he was effective as the stand-in striker in domestic cup competitions, scoring five goals in six starts across the League Cup and the FA Cup in 2025-26, the 27-year-old clearly has more to offer for a team who better suit his skillset.

A move to Spurs, which will be an initial loan that includes an obligation to buy for a £50million with £10m due in add-ons, should suit both parties, offering Marmoush more opportunities to impress while Roberto De Zerbi adds proven firepower to his front line.

Marmoush unleashing the shot that resulted in the Premier League goal of the season for 2024-25 (Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Marmoush joined City off the back of a storming start to the season for Eintracht Frankfurt, scoring 20 goals and registering 13 assists in all competitions by January. City, meanwhile, were emerging from a torrid winter in which they lost nine games in the space two months, dropping out of the title race with a series of sluggish performances with the ball.

Pep Guardiola’s side were struggling to control games and pen their opponents in with possession as they had in the past, increasingly hit on the break by more aggressive, fast-attacking teams. It led to more caution in possession, as City became more hesitant to make forward runs for fear of exposing their shaky defensive shape.

But Guardiola soon sought to switch up his strategy, employing more traditional high-and-wide full-backs in Matheus Nunes and Nico O’Reilly to give City more box-to-box power. The arrival of Marmoush, a springy runner who is dangerous on the break and dynamic with his off-ball movement, helped to reinforce a bolder new approach.

On his debut against Chelsea, Marmoush made 12 runs in-behind according to SkillCorner, the most any City player other than Haaland had made in a game for over eight months.

Many of those were not targeted with a pass, but Marmoush was persistent to keep offering for the ball over the top, and happy to drop to receive to feet if it did not come his way.

“He made incredible movements that the players in the middle could not see,” said Guardiola after the 3-1 win. “But it’s a question of time, knowing each other. We don’t know his movements, the movement that he likes. It needs time.”

Marmoush was effective in his minutes as a sole striker for City or even alongside Haaland in a 4-2-2-2 shape, particularly when space opened up and he was able to attack quickly.

Here he is late on against Brentford, making another storming run behind the defence that is not picked out by Savinho.

Again, Marmoush stays alert despite not receiving the ball and continues to linger on the last line, eventually latching on to a Haaland through ball and finishing smartly into the corner.

Few players were as lethal on the counter as Marmoush at Frankfurt, where he formed a prolific partnership with Hugo Ekitike in a roaming centre-forward role. He had scored four goals from fast breaks by January, assisting a further two for his strike partner, able to use his pace to frequently get in behind disorganised defences.

Here against Bayern Munich, for example, we see his speed and his strength to battle with Dayot Upamecano, before stretching clear and laying the ball on a plate to Ekitike.

Three weeks later against Borussia Monchengladbach, his decision-making at speed is on show once more, twisting and turning as he leads a late breakaway and delaying his pass, before slipping it through for Ellyes Skhiri for a golden opportunity to score.

Though we saw flashes of that potential at City, Marmoush was not given the opportunity to tear into space as often.

Regularly facing deeper defences, his movements to receive through passes were turned down more frequently; around 63.6 per cent of his runs in-behind were targeted with a pass throughout that lethal half-season in the Bundesliga per SkillCorner, a figure that dropped to 51.1 per cent in the Premier League.

He was also more restricted by his positioning, often required to play off the left and to pick up the ball in crowded half-space positions, as illustrated by the heat map below.

Restoring a sense of freedom to Marmoush’s game will be key to unlocking his confidence and his best form once again.

That is not to say that Marmoush is completely nullified in a wider role; his desire to dart into dangerous positions and test the opposition goalkeeper from distance still makes him a threat.

Against Newcastle in February, Marmoush totalled five attempts on goal from the left wing while Haaland occupied the central role. His first came after he was released down the flank by Semenyo, carrying the ball forward before chopping inside and hammering a shot straight at Nick Pope.

Half an hour later, he almost restored City’s two-goal cushion from a more patient attack, receiving a pass from Rodri between the lines and turning, driving into the space created by his team-mate’s runs and launching a powerful effort just wide of the post.

Though not his preferred position, Marmoush is clearly capable of playing across the front line and continues to pose questions to the opposition defence.

That versatility will appeal to De Zerbi, a coach who wants his team to draw the opposition onto them with patient build-up play before breaking through with fast, vertical football.

Marmoush can drop into midfield and combine with his team-mates, but is equally devastating when the space does open up to attack.

Another area of strength for Marmoush is his long-distance shooting, consistently capable of striking through the ball with venom.

He scored three direct free kicks in the space of 10 days for Frankfurt, while he has struck four times from outside the penalty area at City, including his goal of the season winner against Bournemouth.

Has to be goal of the season right? 💥

Out of this world from @OmarMarmoush! 🇪🇬✨ pic.twitter.com/nRllxhZYuq

— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 20, 2025

It is an exciting trait that should help to bring unpredictability to Spurs’ front line, the kind of ‘out-of-nothing’ player that De Zerbi’s side often lacked as they tried to break down stubborn defences.

He struggled to build relationships amid inconsistent game time at City, but more time on the pitch should allow Marmoush to regain some rhythm. He can be overambitious at times, taking aim too often or trying to force the forward pass or carry, but his potential to break games open with moments of magic makes the occasional bouts of wastefulness worthwhile.

Marmoush is arguably at the lowest point of his career since establishing himself in German football. And though football under De Zerbi should not as swashbuckling and carefree as it was when he ran riot at Frankfurt, this should be an opportunity for him to rediscover his sense of adventure with more of a starring role at the top of the team.

Tottenham need a player like Marmoush almost as much as he needs the fresh start.