Ruben Dias leads Man City's four-man captaincy group as Guehi earns nod over Foden

Ruben Dias will captain Manchester City in 2026/27, Enzo Maresca confirmed, with Marc Guehi, Gianluigi Donnarumma and Erling Haaland named alongside him in a four-man leadership group. The announcement ends speculation over who would fill the void left by Bernardo Silva and Rodri, both of whom departed the club this summer.

Dias inherits the armband from Silva, who left on a free transfer after his contract expired. Maresca chose to appoint the captains himself rather than hold a dressing-room vote, and was explicit about wanting an English player in the group — a criterion that ultimately worked in Guehi’s favour.

Phil Foden had put himself forward for the role, but Maresca opted for January signing Guehi, the former Crystal Palace skipper. The 26-year-old has already established himself in the first team and showed further versatility in the opening fixture, where Maresca deployed him in midfield.

Haaland’s inclusion came with a characteristically light touch from the manager, who joked that the Norwegian could not be the primary captain because skippers are needed to relay instructions to teammates after a goal — and Haaland scores too frequently for that to be practical.

Notably absent from the group is Enzo Fernandez, City’s record signing after they paid Chelsea £125 million for the Argentine on deadline day. Fernandez was a key figure under Maresca at Stamford Bridge and the manager moved quickly to bring him to the Etihad this summer, but has stopped short of handing him immediate captaincy responsibilities. Maresca gave no indication that the door is permanently closed for the midfielder.