Jack Grealish and James McAtee included as Manchester City return for pre-season training | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola welcomed back his entire Manchester City squad to training at the City Football Academy on Monday as pre-season training resumed in the North-West.

After a turbulent campaign that saw City finish third in the Premier League and fall short early on in the UEFA Champions League campaign, Guardiola will be looking to re-energise and re-focus his squad ahead of the 2025/26 season.

The return to full training this week also offers clarity on which players are currently part of the first-team fold, even as speculation continues around potential departures for some of the club’s most high-profile names.

City’s summer has already seen significant activity, working on both incoming and outgoing business. Among those decisions are how to manage fringe players such as Jack Grealish, who has been the subject of loan interest from several Premier League sides, as well as James McAtee and a widespread expectation that he will leave on a permanent deal – perhaps including a buy-back clause.

The return to training also marks an important step for players recovering from injury or enduring disrupted campaigns. It provides Pep Guardiola with a first opportunity to assess the full squad ahead of the club’s only friendly clash with Palermo in Sicily on August 9.

As confirmed by the Manchester Evening News’ Simon Bajkowski, all of Manchester City’s first-team players trained together on Monday at the City Football Academy while club officials continue to work in the background on trimming the squad in time for the new season.

It has been revealed that a full group was present alongside Pep Guardiola on Monday regardless of whether they feature in the Catalan’s plans for the forthcoming campaign, including both Jack Grealish and James McAtee.

Grealish’s involvement may raise eyebrows given the strength of rumours linking him with a summer departure. While a permanent transfer has been described as unrealistic due to his wages and £100 million investment in 2021, a season-long loan has not been ruled out.

All of West Ham United, Everton, and Tottenham Hotspur of the Premier League are said to have expressed interest in recent weeks, but Manchester City have yet to approve any formal move.

As for James McAtee, the midfielder is one of several academy graduates who could exit the club this summer in pursuit of regular first-team football. Bundesliga and Premier League clubs are monitoring his situation closely, with Nottingham Forest believed to be most serious about completing a move imminently.

For Pep Guardiola, the presence of both players perhaps offers one final chance to evaluate their potential roles before decisions are finalised. The club’s preference remains to find the right balance between maintaining squad depth and ensuring players’ development or resale value is protected.

Looking ahead, further outgoings could follow swiftly, particularly with Manchester City still hoping to bring in new names and clear a pathway for emerging stars like Divine Mukasa and Claudio Echeverri. The return of pre-season training may bring the squad back together, but the weeks ahead could prove defining for the likes of Grealish, McAtee, and others on the edge of Guardiola’s immediate-term vision.