Manchester
Manchester City have been consistently competing for the title alongside Liverpool and Arsenal for years. Anyone can rarely dislodge these clubs from the top 4. But in the current season, the results of Pep Guardiola’s team are upsetting many fans. Already 6 matches out of 20 have been lost. In the last 3 games, the team scored only 1 point.
The current 6th place in the table is not what the fans hoped for. Even studying any free football prediction before the start of the season fans and analysts did not imagine such results. Let’s try to understand the reasons for this failure and whether it can be corrected.
The regularity of the decline
Let’s start with the simplest and most understandable. No team can play without slumps at all. Manchester City has been a stable contender for the championship for more than 10 years. For the last 3 years, they have been champions. Therefore, a slump was to be expected sooner or later.
At the club, many players passed the peak of their career and went into decline. Moreover:
- the goalkeepers are old;
- the main defenders have less speed;
- the top midfielders don’t have time to help in defense.
As a result, the team scores well but concedes a lot. They have already lost the championship this season, but nobody is stopping them from fighting for the top 4. They just need to overcome the slump and possibly strengthen the team.
Pep’s fatigue
Studying predictions of soccer we can see that Pep has been at the helm of City for a long time. During this time, he could banally burn out. But the main cause of the problems seems to be not only his fatigue but also a great friendship with his charges.
The press has repeatedly said that Pep:
- gave them extra days off;
- overprotecting players in press conferences;
- rotated players where they didn’t need to be rotated.
It seems to many that Pep has lost control of the team. Sometimes he seems so tired that he does indeed lose the thread of the game. But there are always chances for him to rectify the situation.
Guardiola built Manchester City’s system for years for a reason. He didn’t demand a lot of simultaneous transfers. But he always strengthened in a point-by-point manner. And this is the next problem that can also be talked about.
Lack of alternatives to starting players
At the beginning of this article, we mentioned the age of goalkeepers, defenders, and main midfielders. Age means more injuries and a decrease in the speed of players. We can already notice that in the team’s infirmary:
- main goalkeeper Ederson;
- team captain Kyle Walker;
- center back John Stones;
- supporting midfielder Rodri (the current owner of the Golden Ball).
Unfortunately, there are not many adequate replacements for these players on the team. Walker has already asked to be traded. Therefore, the team will need to conduct an aggressive transfer campaign and buy someone younger than Ilkay Gündogan.
Also, we shouldn’t forget about the attack. The city has Erling Holland. But he needs a rest. And no striker could change him. If you buy some young players with experience (Zabarniy from Bournemouth in defense), you can pass the rest of the season less painfully and fulfill the task of getting into the top 4 of the league.
Conclusion
Of course, many analysts including xGscore.io believe Manchester City is still a top club. The team has a good semi-protective chain. But even the resilient De Bruyne needs a good replacement. He is still playing but at 33 years old you need to think about a good replacement. If Pep can find the right players who can also fulfill his role, next year the team will come out of this steep peak and get back on the winning path.
