Welcome to our guide to Manchester City. This article contains everything that you need to know about the club’s history, players, managers, records and rivals. Here at Sportslens you can find the latest Manchester City news and betting tips, so make sure you return regularly.
Explore Our Football Betting Sites
Manchester City Logo & History
Manchester City were founded in 1880 as St. Mark’s, changing name to Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894. From 1923 home Manchester City games were played at Maine Road, until 2003, when Man City match fixtures moved to the City of Manchester Stadium. They have won six league titles from 2011-12 onwards, adding to two previous championships.
It’s not always be so rosy as that, however. Manchester City have had some hard times, notably towards the end of the 1990s when the club dropped into the third tier of English football, what they now call EFL League One, for the first time in its history. Rapid and successive promotions back to the top flight followed, however, where they have remained ever since the year 2000.
The current Man City logo is the fourth Manchester City badge that has been used during the history of the club. Though the design has changed a few times over the years, some aspects have remained consistent. The badge on the Man City shirt is circular and features a ship, which is a reference to the ship on the City of Manchester coat of arms.
Man City Kit
The Man City home kit consists of sky blue shirts and white shorts. Though the origins of the Manchester City shirt colour are unclear, there is evidence to show that the club have worn blue since at least 1892. There are reports that before this date the Manchester City kit colours were scarlet and black, while there was also a black shirt with a white cross.
Red and black has been one of the most frequent combinations for the Man City away kit. Malcolm Allison is said to have introduced it as the change strip in the sixties, in order to emulate AC Milan, one of the giants of Italian football. Kits for away Man City games have also featured a variety of other colours, aside from red and black.
Club Honours
- Premier League / English Football Championship – 8 times: 1936–37, 1967–68, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22
- Championship / Division Two – 7 times: 1898–99, 1902–03, 1909–10, 1927–28, 1946–47, 1965–66, 2001–02
- Other Second Tier Promotions – 5 times: 1895-96, 1950-51, 1984-85, 1988-89, 1999-2000
- Third Tier Promotions – once: 1998-99 (Play-Off winners)
- FA Cup – 6 times: 1903–04, 1933–34, 1955–56, 1968–69, 2010–11, 2018–19
- EFL Cup / Football League Cup – 8 times: 1969–70, 1975–76, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21
- FA Community Shield / Charity Shield – 6 times: 1937, 1968, 1972, 2012, 2018, 2019
- European Cup Winners’ Cup – once: 1969-70
For most of their history, Manchester City FC had won their fair share of silverware, but were not one of England’s most successful clubs. That all changed with a switch in ownership in 2008, which transformed Man City into one of the very richest Premier League teams and indeed in the entire world.
Manchester City today, are a very different club to the one that existed in the past. If you look at their list of honours, a high percentage have come in recent years and that’s only likely to be added to, as the club strive to compete with the very best and set records. In the 2018-19 season, Man City won the domestic treble of the Premier League, EFL / Carabao Cup and FA Cup, which is an achievement that no other English club have managed before or since.
Latest Man City Odds & Betting
Manchester City F.C. are now expected to win every trophy that they compete for. If you’re planning to wager on Man City results this season, then you’ll want to use the top Premier League betting sites offering the best odds.
Here are the best prices currently available for them to win each competition that they’ll be involved in this season, which includes the Manchester City Champions League odds.
| Competition | Best Man City Odds | Bookmaker |
| Premier League | 4/5 | SBK |
| FA Cup | 11/4 | QuinnBet |
| Champions League | 9/4 | BetUK |
Manchester City Squad
The Man City squad is packed with talent. In this section we’ll be taking a look at the options available, position by position, while also remembering some of the great members of past Manchester City team lineups.
Man City Goalkeeper Options
The club has a proud tradition of fielding quality goalkeepers. Previous custodians of the Manchester City goalkeeper shirt include Joe Corrigan, Tony Coton, Joe Hart, Frank Swift and Bert Trautmann. Here are the current crop of stoppers:
- 18. Stefan Ortega (Germany)
- 31. Ederson (Brazil)
- 33. Scott Carson (England)
Man City Defenders
The current Man City team is packed with top defenders, but the club have also had some very good ones in their past, such as legendary former Manchester City captain Tony Book, Tommy Booth, Willie Donachie, Mike Doyle, Richard Dunne, Vincent Kompany, Paul Power, Dave Watson and Pablo Zabaleta. Here is the present roster of defenders:
- 2. Kyle Walker (England)
- 3. Ruben Dias (Portugal)
- 5. John Stones (England)
- 6. Nathan Ake (Netherlands)
- 7. Joao Cancelo (Portugal)
- 14. Aymeric Laporte (Spain)
- 21. Sergio Gomez (Spain)
- 25. Manuel Akanji (Switzerland)
- 82. Rico Lewis (England)
Man City Midfielders
Man City FC has been home to some magnificent midfielders. Past examples include Colin Bell, recent Man City captain Fernandino, Asa Hartford, Nigel De Jong, Giorgi Kinkladze, Paul Lake, Alan Oakes, David Silva, Mike Summerbee and Yaya Toure. Some of the current group of midfielders look destined to be added to this list:
- 4. Kalvin Phillips (England)
- 8. Ilkay Gundogan (Germany)
- 10. Jack Grealish (England)
- 16. Rodri (Spain)
- 17. Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium)
- 20. Bernardo Silva (Portugal)
- 47. Phil Foden (England)
- 80. Cole Palmer (England)
Man City Strikers
When it comes to the men tasked with ensuring that Manchester City score, there have been some special players. In the past Man City have had forwards of the quality of Sergio Aguero, Eric Brook, Joe Hayes, Francis Lee, Billy Meredith, Niall Quinn, Raheem Sterling and Neil Young. Here are the current striking options at the club:
- 9. Erling Haaland (Norway)
- 19. Julian Alvarez (Argentina)
- 26. Riyad Mahrez (Algeria)
Man City Players with Most Appearances
To be a true club legend, you have to stick around for some years. Here are the players who have enjoyed the largest amount of Manchester City game time.
| Rank | Player Name | Years | League Games | FA Cup Matches | League Cup Appearances | European Games | Other Matches | Man City Game Total |
| 1 | Alan Oakes | 1959-1976 | 561 | 41 | 46 | 17 | 11 | 676 |
| 2 | Joe Corrigan | 1967-1983 | 476 | 37 | 52 | 27 | 10 | 602 |
| 3 | Mike Doyle | 1967-1978 | 441 | 44 | 43 | 23 | 12 | 563 |
| 4 | Bert Trautmann | 1949-1964 | 508 | 33 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 545 |
| 5 | Colin Bell | 1966-1979 | 393 | 33 | 40 | 23 | 9 | 498 |
| 6 | Eric Brook | 1928-1939 | 450 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 493 |
| 7 | Tommy Booth | 1968-1981 | 380 | 27 | 44 | 25 | 11 | 487 |
| 8 | Mike Summerbee | 1965-1975 | 345 | 34 | 36 | 16 | 8 | 449 |
| 9 | Paul Power | 1975-1986 | 358 | 28 | 37 | 7 | 6 | 436 |
| 10 | Willie Donachie | 1970-1980 | 347 | 21 | 40 | 13 | 10 | 431 |
| 10 | David Silva | 2010-2020 | 281 | 30 | 16 | 61 | 2 | 390 |
All Time Manchester City Top Scorers
Man City score a lot of goals these days, but throughout their history they have had plenty of players who knew how to put the ball in the net. Here are their all-time record goalscorers.
| Rank | Player Name | Years | League Goals | FA Cup Goals | League Cup Goals | European Goals | Other Goals | Total |
| 1 | Sergio Aguero | 2011-2021 | 184 | 20 | 11 | 43 | 2 | 260 |
| 2 | Eric Brook | 1927-1940 | 158 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 177 |
| 3 | Tommy Johnson | 1920-1930 | 158 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 166 |
| 4 | Colin Bell | 1966-1979 | 117 | 9 | 18 | 8 | 1 | 153 |
| 5= | Joe Hayes | 1953-1965 | 142 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 152 |
| 5= | Billy Meredith | 1894-1906, 1921-1924 | 148 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 152 |
| 7 | Francis Lee | 1967-1974 | 112 | 7 | 14 | 11 | 4 | 148 |
| 8 | Tommy Browell | 1913-1926 | 122 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 139 |
| 9= | Billie Gillespie | 1897-1905 | 126 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 132 |
| 9= | Fred Tilson | 1928-1938 | 110 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 132 |
Biggest Man City Signings & Transfers
Man City news tends to be dominated by transfer speculation. The club are one of the very richest in the world and no player is out of their reach. In this section we’re going to look at the Manchester City players that have attracted the biggest transfer fees and the stars that they have signed for the biggest fees.
Most Expensive Man City Transfers
Manchester City are one of the biggest spenders in both English and world football. Here are the biggest Man City transfer fees ever paid.
| Rank | Player Name | Year Signed | Club Signed From | Reported Fee |
| 1 | Jack Grealish | 2021 | Aston Villa | £100,000,000 |
| 2 | Rodri | 2019 | Atletico Madrid | £63,600,000 |
| 3 | Ruben Dias | 2020 | Benfica | £62,000,000 |
| 4= | Riyad Mahrez | 2018 | Leicester City | £60,000,000 |
| 4= | Joao Cancelo | 2019 | Juventus | £60,000,000 |
| 6 | Aymeric Laporte | 2018 | Athletic Bilbao | £57,000,000 |
| 7 | Kevin De Bruyne | 2015 | VfL Wolfsburg | £55,000,000 |
| 8 | Erling Haaland | 2022 | Borussia Dortmund | £51,200,000 |
| 9 | Benjamin Mendy | 2017 | Monaco | £49,000,000 |
| 10 | Kyle Walker | 2017 | Tottenham Hotspur | £48,000,000 |
Club’s Most Expensive Sales
If you’re buying players, then someone has to make space for their arrival. Here are the biggest ever transfer fees received by Manchester City football club.
| Rank | Player Name | Year Sold | Club Sold To | Reported Fee |
| 1 | Leroy Sane | 2020 | Bayern Munich | £54,800,000 |
| 2 | Raheem Sterling | 2022 | Chelsea | £47,500,000 |
| 3 | Ferran Torres | 2022 | FC Barcelona | £46,300,000 |
| 4 | Gabriel Jesus | 2022 | Arsenal | £45,000,000 |
| 5 | Danilo | 2019 | Juventus | £34,100,000 |
| 6 | Oleksandr Zinchenko | 2022 | Arsenal | £30,000,000 |
| 7 | Kelechi Iheanacho | 2017 | Leicester City | £24,000,000 |
| 8 | Alvaro Negredo | 2015 | Valencia | £23,500,000 |
| 9 | Shaun Wright-Phillips | 2005 | Chelsea | £21,000,000 |
| 10 | Mario Balotelli | 2013 | AC Milan | £19,000,000 |
Manchester City Manager List – Head Coaches Past & Present
The Man City manager situation has been very stable over recent years, but it hasn’t always been this way. Here is the full list of Manchester City managers.
- Frederick Hopkinson (1880-1882)
- Jack McGee (1882-1884)
- Edward Kitchen (1884-1887)
- Walter Chew (1887-1889)
- Lawrence Furniss (1889-1893)
- Joshua Parlby (1893-1895)
- Sam Omerod (1895-1902)
- Tom Maley (1902-1906)
- Harry Newbould (1906-1912)
- Ernest Mangnall (1912-1924)
- David Ashworth (1924-1925)
- Albert Alexander (1925-1926)
- Peter Hodge (1926-1932)
- Wilf Wild (1932-1946)
- Sam Cowan (1946-1947)
- Wilf Wild (1947-1947)
- Jock Thomson (1947-1950)
- Les McDowall (1950-1963)
- George Poyser (1963-1965)
- Joe Mercer (1965-1971)
- Malcolm Allison (1971-1973)
- Johnny Hart (1973-1973)
- Tony Book (1973-1973)
- Ron Saunders (1973-1974)
- Tony Book (1974-1979)
- Malcolm Allison (1979-1980)
- Tony Book (1980-1980)
- John Bond (1980-1983)
- John Benson (1983-1983)
- Billy McNeill (1983-1986)
- Jimmy Frizzell (1986-1987)
- Mel Machin (1987-1989)
- Tony Book (1989-1989)
- Howard Kendall (1989-1990)
- Peter Reid (1990-1993)
- Tony Book (1993-1993)
- Brian Horton (1993-1995)
- Alan Ball (1995-1996)
- Asa Hartford (1996-1996)
- Steve Coppell (1996-1996)
- Phil Neal (1996-1996)
- Frank Clark (1996-1998)
- Joe Royle (1998-2001)
- Kevin Keegan (2001-2005)
- Stuart Pearce (2005-2007)
- Sven-Goran Eriksson (2007-2008)
- Mark Hughes (2008-2009)
- Roberto Mancini (2009-2013)
- Brian Kidd (2013-2013)
- Manuel Pellegrini (2013-2016)
- Pep Guardiola (2016-Present)
Manchester City Stadium – The Etihad Stadium
Home Man City fixtures are played at the City of Manchester Stadium, also known as Eastlands but most commonly as the Etihad Stadium for sponsorship reasons. The stadium was opened in 2002 to host the Commonwealth Games that were held in Manchester. It was then converted to become the new Manchester City stadium, with the team playing their games there from the 2003-04 season.
Today, the Etihad Stadium has a capacity of 53,400. Previously, home Manchester City fixtures had been played at Maine Road. The club moved to Maine Road in 1922, having played at Hyde Road and a variety of other home grounds before that.
Manchester City Rivalries
Man City FC have many rivalries. Some are built about geography, while others have developed over recent years, as the club have battled for trophies, both in England and in Europe. In this section we’re going to examine some of the club’s biggest rivalries.
Man City vs Man United – The Manchester Derby
One of the biggest fixtures in the English football calendar is Manchester City vs Manchester United. Local antagonism plays a huge part in the rivalry, with City considering themselves to be the true club of Manchester, with United tending to not just have fans from the city, but from all around the world.
It’s Manchester United that have been more successful over history, but City had plenty of fine moments against them, perhaps most memorably when the former United legend Denis Law scored the winning goal for City against his old team, to relegate them. Man Utd vs Man City has more than just location behind it as a rivalry, then.
During much of the Alex Ferguson era at Manchester United, it was very hard for Manchester City to compete. Everything changed when new ownership arrived in 2008, levelling the playing field in the Man United vs Man City fixture. Since then, it’s Man City that have become the dominant team in Manchester and England. Here is the full record of Manchester United vs Manchester City results.
| Competition | Manchester City Wins | Draws | Manchester United Wins |
| League | 49 | 52 | 65 |
| FA Cup | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| League Cup | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| European Matches | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Games | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 57 | 53 | 77 |
Liverpool vs Man City
The biggest modern rivalry in English football when it comes to competing for trophies is the Liverpool vs Manchester City fixture. In recent seasons it has been these two clubs battling to win the Premier League and often also domestic cups, with City tending to get the upper-hand overall. Man City vs Liverpool is the main event right now.
They’ve even played in the UEFA Champions League, with Liverpool winning both legs of their quarter-final in 2018, en-route to the final. Here is the complete history of Manchester City vs Liverpool results.
| Competition | Manchester City Wins | Draws | Liverpool Wins |
| League | 45 | 45 | 80 |
| FA Cup | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| League Cup | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| European Matches | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Other Games | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 48 | 51 | 90 |
Man City vs Arsenal
The Arsenal vs Manchester City fixture has become one that is synonymous with fine football. Arsenal’s devotion to style was established under their long-serving manager Arsene Wenger and continues today under Mikel Arteta, who served under Pep Guardiola as assistant coach at Manchester City, before being brought to London.
When Manchester City became newly wealthy, Arsenal were one of the main teams that they targeted when it came to signing players, tempting the likes of Kolo Toure, Gael Clichy, Samir Nasri and Emmanuel Adebayor away. Arsenal vs Man City suddenly became a fixture with plenty of backstory to it as this certainly stoked tensions between the clubs. Here is the full record of Manchester City match results against the Gunners.
| Competition | Manchester City Wins | Draws | Arsenal Wins |
| League | 57 | 44 | 87 |
| FA Cup | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| League Cup | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| European Matches | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Games | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 62 | 45 | 98 |
Chelsea vs Man City
Another club that Manchester City have developed a rivalry with is Chelsea. Under the ownership of Roman Abramovich, Chelsea were the biggest spending club in England, until Manchester City’s change in circumstances, saw them able to upset that situation.
Manchester City edged out Chelsea in the 2013-14 title race, only for Chelsea to win the Premier League ahead of them, the following season. Chelsea also beat Manchester City in the final of the 2020-21 Champions League. Here is the full record of Man City vs Chelsea results.
| Competition | Manchester City Wins | Draws | Chelsea Wins |
| League | 53 | 39 | 62 |
| FA Cup | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| League Cup | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| European Matches | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Other Games | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 60 | 40 | 69 |
Tottenham vs Man City
The most famous Manchester City vs Tottenham match came in when the teams met in the 1981 FA Cup Final. They drew 1-1, before a replay which Spurs won 3-2. Recently Manchester City were able to exact some revenge, when they beat Tottenham Hotspur in the final of the EFL Cup in 2021.
Man City vs Tottenham has become one of the most competitive fixtures during the Pep Guardiola era, with Spurs knocking City out of the Champions League in 2019 and winning both Premier League fixtures in 2021-22. Spurs vs Man City has thus emerged as a key match recently. Here is the record of Manchester City results against Spurs.
| Competition | Manchester City Wins | Draws | Tottenham Wins |
| League | 58 | 33 | 56 |
| FA Cup | 5 | 3 | 6 |
| League Cup | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| European Matches | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Other Games | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 65 | 36 | 65 |
Man City vs Real Madrid
The Manchester City vs Real Madrid fixture has become a regular sight in the Champions League. They were paired together in the group stage in 2012-13 and then met in the semi-finals in 2015-16. On both occasions the Real Madrid vs Man City fixtures threw up the same results, with City drawing at home and losing away.
Manchester City took some revenge in 2019-20, when they knocked Real Madrid out of the competition in the last-16 stage. It didn’t take long however, for Real Madrid to get back on top, when they produced an improbable comeback to beat City 6-5 in the 2021-22 semi-finals. The Real Madrid vs Manchester City rivalry looks set to run and run.
Man City vs PSG
Both Manchester City and PSG have seen their fortunes transformed over recent years after being taken over by state sponsored owners from the Middle East. These clubs have become amongst the richest and most successful in the world and Manchester City vs PSG has become something of a rivalry, with the clubs competing regularly in the Champions League and the transfer market.
It’s the English club that have been on top when the Man City vs PSG fixture has been played. Manchester City have twice knocked PSG out of the Champions League knockout stages, beating them in the 2015-16 quarter-finals and the 2020-21 semi-finals.
Man City vs Atletico Madrid
You could say that the Atletico Madrid vs Man City rivalry started with a transfer. City signed Atletico’s brightest young player Sergio Aguero back in 2011 and the Argentine went on to become one of their greatest ever players and their all-time top goalscorer.
The Atletico Madrid vs Manchester City fixture has only ever been played once. They met in the 2021-22 Champions League quarter-finals, with City progressing. With both Atletico and Man City Champions League regulars, their paths are bound to cross again before long.
