LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND — Liverpool and Manchester City enter the 2026-27 Premier League season facing one of the biggest transitions in recent English football, with both clubs beginning new chapters after losing figures who defined their recent dominance.
For Liverpool, the departure of Mohamed Salah brings an end to an extraordinary nine-year spell at Anfield. For Manchester City, Pep Guardiola’s exit closes a decade-long managerial era that transformed the club into one of England’s most successful sides.
The changes go beyond two famous names. Liverpool have also replaced Arne Slot with Andoni Iraola, while City have appointed Enzo Maresca to succeed Guardiola. Both clubs therefore begin the campaign with new leadership, new expectations and major questions about whether they can immediately reproduce the standards established by their predecessors.
Liverpool’s transition is particularly striking because Salah’s departure ends one of the most productive individual careers in the club’s modern history. Since joining from Roma in 2017, the Egyptian forward helped Liverpool win two Premier League titles, the Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup, the UEFA Super Cup, the FA Cup and two League Cups. He also scored 255 goals in 435 appearances before bringing his Liverpool chapter to a close.
His absence leaves Liverpool without the player who had become one of the team’s most dependable sources of goals and attacking creativity.
The challenge has now fallen to Iraola, who replaced Slot after the Dutchman’s two-season spell at Anfield ended with Liverpool winning their 20th top-flight league title. Iraola arrives from Bournemouth with a reputation for energetic football and problem-solving, but his first season at Liverpool begins under considerably different circumstances.
Liverpool are also dealing with further departures. Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konate have left, while Curtis Jones has also moved on, adding to the sense of major change around the squad.
The club has responded by bringing in new players, including defender Jeremy Jacquet, forward Victor Munoz and Ronald Araujo on loan. However, Iraola has acknowledged that the squad could still require further reinforcements, particularly in wide attacking positions.
The pressure will be especially high on Liverpool’s remaining attacking stars. Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, who endured difficult first seasons at the club, will be expected to assume greater responsibility in a team no longer able to rely on Salah’s established output.
Manchester City face an equally dramatic transition.
Guardiola’s departure marks the end of a period that produced six Premier League titles and a remarkable collection of domestic and European trophies. His influence extended far beyond City’s results, with his tactical philosophy helping shape English football for much of the past decade.
Now Maresca must attempt to establish his own identity while maintaining the standards expected at the Etihad.
The challenge is significant because City are not simply replacing a manager. The club has also experienced changes among key players, with Rodri and other important figures linked to or involved in departures. The squad that once dominated English football is increasingly being reshaped.
Maresca’s appointment gives City a manager familiar with possession-based football, but succeeding Guardiola inevitably creates comparisons.
The 2026-27 campaign will therefore provide an early test of whether City can remain title contenders without the manager who defined their footballing identity.
The timing makes the situation even more intriguing because Arsenal enter the season as defending Premier League champions. Mikel Arteta’s side ended City’s recent dominance last season and now face the challenge of defending their own crown.
That creates a potentially different Premier League landscape.
For years, Liverpool and Manchester City were central figures in the title race, with their rivalry helping define one of the competition’s strongest eras. Their meetings frequently carried championship implications, while Salah and Guardiola became synonymous with the battle for English football’s biggest prize.
Now both clubs must prove they can remain at the top without their iconic figures.
Liverpool’s first league fixture comes away against Newcastle United on August 23, giving Iraola an immediate test at St James’ Park. City, meanwhile, begin their campaign at home against Bournemouth.
The season is also part of an unusually dramatic managerial transition across the Premier League. Nine clubs begin the campaign with managers appointed since the end of last season, making 2026-27 one of the league’s biggest periods of change.
For Liverpool and City, however, the transformation carries a deeper significance.
They are not simply adapting to new coaches or replacing individual players. They are attempting to establish new identities after losing personalities who became central to their success.
Liverpool must discover whether its attacking structure can function without Salah, while Iraola must convince supporters that his methods can produce results at one of the world’s biggest clubs.
City, meanwhile, must determine whether Maresca can successfully guide a squad accustomed to Guardiola’s tactical demands while maintaining the winning mentality that has become part of the club’s identity.
The answers will not come immediately.
But as the 2026-27 Premier League season begins, one thing is already clear: the era defined by Salah at Liverpool and Guardiola at Manchester City is over.
A new chapter has begun — and both clubs must now prove that their success can survive the departure of the men who helped define it.
