Blues linked with Stones, Laporte, Pogba and Kroos
With Pep Guardiola joining in the summer City will receive a much needed lift, while the club has enjoyed success under Pellegrini the team has slipped into the doldrums and the club face a year without silverware.
The lure of playing under Pep is well known, it was the factor behind Mario Götze's infamous switch from BVB to Bayern, and will give City huge leverage over potential targets. On top of this, the Spaniard is known for his uncompromising approach to selling players.
A number of reasons were cited for Guardiola's exit from FC Barcelona, but one of the most prevalent rumours was because the club refused to sell Fabregas, Pique, Dani Alves and David Villa, who were deemed surplus to the tacticians plans. With that in mind we can certainly expect a fair few City players getting their marching orders this summer.
We can safely assume Sergio Agüero will be staying, the super striker was one of the highest paid athletes in 2015 for a very good reason, and despite persistent reports of Lewandowski being high on Pep's agenda it's unlikely the Argentine will leave the club.
Where we can expect to see changes is in defence. Let's assume that Martín Demichelis may have enjoyed his last season in a City shirt, which means reinforcements are required. The obvious choice may be John Stones, with Premiership experience and a good technical ability he is the type of player Pep would like in his side.
Another interesting candidate is the outstanding Aymeric Laporte of Athletic Bilbao. The French / Basque player is ranked amongst the best young defenders in the world, and would offer a great long term solution to City's defensive troubles.
When Guardiola joined Bayern the club went out of their way to secure him a 'marquee' signing, in the form of Götze. Considering the money at City's disposal the same could happen this time round, but who?
Paul Pogba has been touted by the majority of media outlets as the prime candidate, and would serve as a replacement for Yaya Toure, who will be exiting the club this summer. Another name in the mix is Real Madrid star Toni Kroos, who left the Bavarian club before Pep took the helm. With exceptional vision and passing the German would fit nicely into the famous Guardiola style.
Whatever happens we can expect something of a revolving door at the Etihad this summer.