Enzo Maresca believes Manchester City need plenty of quality options across midfield if they are serious about competing for major honours this season.
City's manager made the point after his side defeated Coventry City 1-0 at the Etihad, a result that extended their perfect Premier League start to three victories from three matches.
The comments also provide some insight into the thinking behind City's huge summer rebuild, which saw the club spend more than £450 million strengthening Maresca's squad.
“If you want to be there competing, you need options,” Maresca said. “Arsenal have options, we have options, more teams have options. Not just us!”
He added that he was “very happy” with the options currently available to him.
Why squad depth matters to Maresca
For a club competing across several competitions, having a strong starting XI is only part of the challenge.
Players will face injuries, suspensions, fatigue and changes in form throughout the season.
That means managers need reliable alternatives rather than depending on the same group of players every week.
Maresca pointed to Arsenal as an example.
The Gunners have already shown their ability to rotate without dramatically reducing the quality of their team.
According to Maresca, Arsenal have made five changes in each of their matches since the Community Shield while still fielding players with significant international experience.
City's response has been to build similar depth of their own.
Enzo Fernández adds another major option
The arrival of Enzo Fernández is perhaps the clearest example of that approach.
Manchester City completed a British record equalling £125 million deal for the Argentine midfielder on deadline day, bringing in a player capable of adding creativity, passing quality and experience to the centre of the pitch.
His first appearance came sooner than expected against Coventry after Nico O'Reilly suffered an injury during the warm up.
Fernández went straight into the starting XI and played a role in the only goal of the game, finding Antoine Semenyo before the winger supplied Erling Haaland for the winning header.
That early contribution gives Maresca another reason to be satisfied with the depth at his disposal.
City have more than just Fernández
Fernández is not the only addition to City's midfield options.
Elliot Anderson has also become an important part of the new look midfield, while Rayan Cherki provides another creative option who can operate between midfield and attack.
The competition for places could therefore become one of the defining features of Maresca's first season at the club.
Rather than having a fixed group of starters, the manager now has the flexibility to change his midfield depending on the opponent, workload and tactical demands.
That flexibility is particularly important after the significant changes to City's squad this summer.
Maresca's rebuild is about competing, not simply adding names
It would be easy to look at City's spending and judge the summer purely by the size of the transfer fees.
Maresca's explanation suggests there was another objective... making sure the squad is capable of maintaining its level throughout a demanding campaign.
The manager has already seen the benefit of that depth against Coventry.
Fernández was initially named among the substitutes but had to start after O'Reilly's injury, while the team was still able to maintain control and secure three points.
That is exactly the type of situation squad depth is designed to handle.
City may not need every expensive signing to start every important match. What matters is having players capable of stepping in when circumstances change.
A long season will test City's options
Manchester City have made the perfect start under Maresca, but the real test will come as the fixtures accumulate.
Premier League title challenges are rarely decided by the quality of a starting XI alone. Injuries, European commitments, domestic cups and fixture congestion can place enormous demands on a squad.
Maresca clearly believes City now have enough depth to handle those challenges.
His comparison with Arsenal is also telling.
The manager understands that City are not competing in isolation; other title contenders have strengthened too.
For Manchester City, the objective is therefore not simply to have more players. It is to have enough quality across the squad to maintain a high level when the season becomes demanding.
So far, Maresca is happy with what he has.
The next question is whether those options can help City turn their perfect start into a serious Premier League title challenge.