Maresca offers no guarantees over Omar Marmoush as Jeremy Doku faces three-week absence

Enzo Maresca says he does not know whether Omar Marmoush will remain at Manchester City, while confirming that Jeremy Doku is expected to miss between two and three weeks with a calf problem.

Maresca discussed a number of issues concerning the club during his news conference before Manchester City’s Premier League opener against Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

The manager said he was looking forward to the start of the new campaign and the opportunity to begin the season at home.

“I feel very excited to start this new chapter and this new journey,” Maresca said. “Our aim is to continue along the same path that we have followed over the past 10 or 15 years, so we are very happy to finally play our first match at home.”

Manchester City have 10 days remaining in the summer transfer window, but Maresca did not set a specific target for the number of further signings.

“We do not have a minimum or maximum number of transfers,” he said. “It depends on certain factors. We know exactly what we need, and we will see what happens over the next 10 days. We have 10 days and hope we can carry out what we are planning.”

Maresca also rejected the possibility of discussing a potential move for Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

“Unfortunately, I always find myself having to answer in the same way: Enzo is a Chelsea player, and I will not talk about players who are not part of our squad,” he said. “I think that is disrespectful, and I do not like other managers talking about our players.”

The manager said Bournemouth’s identity was clear after watching their pre-season match and some of their games from last season.

“I also watched their pre-season game, as well as some of their matches last season,” Maresca said. “You can clearly see their identity. They are a team with an attacking style of play and intense pressing. They were like that under Andoni Iraola, and they remain the same. It is completely clear what they do, whether they have the ball or not.”

Doku was substituted after complaining of discomfort during Manchester City’s most recent match. Maresca said the decision had already been planned because the Belgium international was not expected to play beyond 45 minutes.

“During the last match, Doku complained of some pain in his calf at half-time,” he said. “We did not want him to play more than 45 minutes, so the decision to replace him had been planned in advance. The current estimate is that he will be out for between two and three weeks, and no longer than that.”

Maresca was also asked about the futures of Rodri and Savinho, amid uncertainty over the Brazilian winger.

“It is completely clear that when a player wants to leave, it becomes difficult to convince him to stay,” he said. “That happened with Rodri, and the same situation is now repeating itself with Savinho. He expressed his desire to leave from the first day he arrived, and we are waiting to see what happens now.”

Maresca added that, apart from Rodri, the players involved had not featured regularly.

“With the exception of Rodri, they all have one thing in common: they have not played many matches,” he said. “When players do not play, they prefer to leave. The players I mentioned, apart from Rodri, are all players who have not had many opportunities to play, for different reasons.”

Tottenham Hotspur have reached an agreement with Manchester City over a deal for Savinho during the current summer transfer window. The transfer could be worth up to £85m in total.

However, Maresca said Marmoush’s situation was different and offered no firm indication that the Egypt international would stay.

“I do not know,” Maresca said. “Omar is still here and he is still with us. He is different from Savinho, so we will see what happens.”

He added: “Usually, things become complicated when a player leaves and you have to sign a replacement. We will see whether Omar stays or not. If someone leaves, then someone else has to come in.”

Maresca said Savinho had made his intentions clear from the outset, unlike Marmoush.

“From the first day, Savinho asked to leave, whereas Omar Marmoush did not ask to leave from the first day,” he said.

Tottenham are also close to making a further move to strengthen their attack, having entered advanced negotiations with Manchester City for Marmoush.

Reports indicate that Tottenham have reached an agreement with the Egypt forward over the personal terms of a contract. Discussions between the two clubs are continuing over the transfer fee and the structure of the deal.