Liverpool and Manchester City are entering crucial seasons as they are forced to adapt to new eras without Mohamed Salah and Pep Guardiola, respectively. Enzo Maresca is now in charge at City, and Anndoni Iraola is at Liverpool, replacing these iconic figures.
Mohamed Salah and Pep Guardiola are considered among the most outstanding personalities in Premier League history; how Liverpool and Manchester City cope without them will define their seasons.
For the first time since 2016, Liverpool starts a campaign without the Egyptian forward Salah, who served as the team's mascot. Meanwhile, City can no longer rely on Guardiola's genius after a decade of greatest successes.
Salah moved to Turkish club Trabzonspor in early August, ending his career at Anfield, one of the greatest players in Liverpool's rich history. Guardiola resigned at the end of last season, bringing an end to City's most successful period in history.
Now that the Premier League is starting, both clubs enter a new phase without these legends. City will host Bournemouth on Sunday, which will be Enzo Maresca's first match in the league after Guardiola's departure. Within hours, Liverpool's new manager, Anndoni Iraola, will select a lineup without Salah when the Reds travel to Newcastle.
The uncertainty regarding the prospects of both clubs this season is related not only to the loss of Guardiola and Salah but also to the turbulence preceding their emotional farewell in May.
Guardiola won six Premier League titles and one Champions League title, achieving a total of 20 trophies since starting in 2016. In his last season, the 55-year-old manager lifted the FA Cup and the League Cup, but left the club when City lost its dominant position in England after failing to win the title in the last two years.
Guardiola admitted that he struggled with generating the necessary energy to lead City's fight against Arsenal last season, resulting in the 'Canaries' ultimately surpassing him by seven points to win the championship. The departure of his trusted football director Tsiki Begiristain in 2025 made Guardiola regret that 'part of me is leaving.' Furthermore, City faced accusations from the Football Association regarding alleged financial irregularities, and Guardiola felt an obligation to remain loyal to the club.
However, he was becoming increasingly tired of the burden associated with squad rebuilding, which required new players after the departures of veterans such as Kevin De Bruyne, Ederson, Kyle Walker, and Riyad Mahrez in recent years.
City's rebuilding, achieved with large sums of money, proved to be only a partial success, placing a difficult task before former Chelsea manager Maresca to follow in Guardiola's footsteps. The Italian is well acquainted with City, having worked as Guardiola's assistant during the 2022-23 season when the team won the treble. However, Maresca has limited managerial experience, having had less than two seasons at Chelsea, one year in the second division with Leicester, and a short spell at Parma.
His modest resume differs greatly from Guardiola's trophy-laden time at Barcelona and Bayern before moving to Manchester. In Liverpool, located just 35 miles south on the M62, cautious steps are also beginning in the first season after Salah.
When Salah moved to Liverpool from Roma for £36 million in 2017, few could predict the subsequent success. Despite a difficult period at Chelsea, he immediately became a hit on Merseyside. The 34-year-old player scored 257 goals for Liverpool in 442 matches across all competitions, becoming the third-best goalscorer in the club's history. He created countless magical moments, winning two Premier League titles, the Champions League, and the FA Cup and League Cup.
However, Salah's final chapter at Liverpool was not pretty. Last season, he was substituted several times by Arne Slot, and he was blamed for the club 'dropping him under the bus.' The rift between Salah and Slot was never fully resolved, and he scored only seven match goals while Liverpool was in fifth place before the Dutch manager's dismissal.
Replacing a generation of talent like Salah will require more than one player. Iraola hopes that Swedish striker Alexander Isak will significantly improve his game after his first season at Anfield, marred by injuries, while newcomers Victor Muñoz and teenager Rio Ngumocha generate great expectations. Nevertheless, regardless of the efforts, neither Liverpool nor City will ever be the same without their cult figures who defined the era.