Pep Guardiola has raised the possibility of Manchester City making no major signings this summer.
Speaking for the first time since the end of the season on City's transfer plans, Guardiola offered a cryptic assessment of the market, suggesting some of the things the club want to do are 'not possible'.
Guardiola said earlier this year that he didn't expect City to sign a new striker given the current asking prices of selling clubs, and they are facing an expensive summer if they want to sign Harry Kane or Jack Grealish.
Both players are likely to command fees in the region of £100m, if they are for sale at all, and while City are prepared to invest in a big-name striker to replace Sergio Aguero, they won't overspend on a player if their own valuations are exceeded.
Guardiola is currently holidaying in Spain, and in an interview with TV3 (via Mundo Deportivo ) he suggested City are prepared to spend £100m on a player, even if he was speaking hypothetically.
He said: "I imagine that if we want to sign a Barca or Madrid player for 100 million or so, Barca and Madrid will not complain. They will be delighted that it can be done, I wish now they would.
"I don't know how the market will end. I don't know, with Txiki [Begiristain], what we can do because many times you want to do things that are not possible.
"What we can do, we will do and if we do not continue with the squad we have, with which we have won three Leagues in four years, we have finally reached a Champions League final.”
Back in February, Guardiola addressed speculation that City were interested in Erling Haaland, refusing to speak specifically on the Borussia Dortmund striker, but instead saying: "With the prices we are not going to buy any strikers, it is impossible, we can not afford it. It's impossible.
"All the clubs struggling financially, we are not an exception. We have Gabriel [Jesus], Ferran [Torres] who has been incredible in this position, we have young players in the academy, we play many times with a false-9.
"I don't know what is going to happen. Maybe we're going to buy but maybe, maybe we're not going to buy any striker for the next season. Today there is more chance we aren't going to buy any striker for the next season."
