Pep Guardiola Soundly Warns Premier League about Saudi Spending Frenzy

Pep Guardiola has issued a cautionary statement to the Premier League, stating that the financial lure offered by Saudi Arabia has had a profound impact on the transfer market, following the departure of winger Riyad Mahrez to Al Ahli.

Mahrez is just one of the many high-profile footballers who have followed Cristiano Ronaldo to the Middle East this summer, thanks to the backing of the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) which aims to establish a new powerhouse by financing the top four teams in the league.

While Guardiola did not anticipate losing Mahrez this summer, he stated that Manchester City will not actively seek a direct replacement for the Algerian. However, he did acknowledge the potential arrival of a forward with a different style of play at the Etihad.

'We are not looking for a replacement of Riyad in terms of skill because every player is different,' Guardiola explained. 'We will see what happens with loan players and which players stay here. A few things are going to happen.'

Furthermore, Guardiola warned the rest of the Premier League that the influx of spending from the Saudi Pro League has drastically altered the transfer market, making it challenging for even the biggest English clubs to retain their top talents.

'Saudi Arabia has changed the market,' Guardiola stated. 'A few months ago, when Cristiano was the only one to go, no one thought this many top, top players would play in the Saudi league.

'In the future, there will be more, and that's why clubs need to be aware of what is happening. Riyad received an incredible offer, and that's why we could not say 'don't do it'.'

In addition to losing Mahrez, Manchester City has also bid farewell to captain Ilkay Gundogan, who joined Barcelona this summer. The club is now engaged in a battle with Bayern Munich to retain the services of right-back Kyle Walker, who has received a significant offer from the Bundesliga champions.

On this week's edition of Talking Transfers, a part of the 90min podcast network, Toby Cudworth and Graeme Bailey discuss various topics such as Bayern Munich's pursuit of Harry Kane, Brighton's rejection of another Chelsea bid for Moises Caicedo, and which club has had the most impressive transfer window so far.