Man City is repeating a formula in the last 3 matches in the Premier League: dropping victory in the last minutes.
First Cole Palmer, then Trent Alexander-Arnold and now Dejan Kulusevski. The three players above scored the equalizer in the last minutes and caused Man City to regretfully lose the victory. The Citizens have led their opponents 6 times in the last 3 matches but have not won any victories. It feels like dropping points in the last minutes is becoming a habit for Man City.
If Man City had been more careful and maintained victories against Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham, the situation at the top of the Premier League would have been very different. Pep Guardiola’s team will be 3 points ahead of Arsenal, 7 points ahead of Liverpool and extend their winning streak in all competitions to 9.
Instead, there is a rare weakness, a carelessness that has become characteristic of Man City this season. Of course, this situation may not last long for the Champions League champion. It’s hardly surprising that Pep Guardiola tinkered with finding a new formula before settling on something.
Will the same thing happen this season or has Man City really been caught out?
For the first time in 6 and a half years, Man City went 3 matches without winning in the Premier League. The Citizens won the tournament with 100, 98, 86, 93 and 89 points respectively. This is a number that is difficult to achieve for any other team. However, at the current pace, they are only moving towards 82 points. That is a warning to Pep and his students.
Until now, Pep has often refuted his own arguments. He always affirmed that the Premier League is the toughest tournament in the world and listed a series of bright championship candidates. But in the end, everything was defeated at the hands of Man City. However, The Citizens have not shown such clear superiority this season.
Chelsea, Liverpool and Spurs all held off Man City, and Arsenal even won all 3 points. Man City did very well to win at least 1-0 against Newcastle. However, their only impressive victory against the nominal “Big Six” was a 3-0 win over Man United.
Man City will have to regret their bad decisions. Poor discipline, sloppy defending and some individual mistakes. In addition, they have had 49 shots in the last 3 draws, with Erling Haaland being the most wasteful.
Man City has always had different problems this season. They lost to Wolves and Arsenal when Rodri was suspended, for being sent off senselessly. In the near future, Pep’s army will march to Villa Park without Rodri and Jack Grealish due to suspension. Each person has received 5 yellow cards before.
Meanwhile, Pep’s new defensive formula seems to be having problems. Despite trying to field many central defenders, Man City still conceded 10 goals in the last 4 matches in all competitions.
Being susceptible to counter-attacks is a familiar failure and is a point that Tottenham exploited very well when meeting Man City. Conceding a goal due to a header – both Thiago Silva and Kulusevski are of modest height but still beat The Citizens’ defense.
And Man City’s dynamics have also changed. The Etihad home team no longer has maximum security in midfield when Ilkay Gundogan has left and John Stones is injured. The new midfield with Julian Alvarez, Jeremy Doku and Phil Foden always looks forward and reveals many loopholes.
Obviously, Pep must consider sacrificing one of those three midfielders to find safety. Mateo Kovacic or Rico Lewis will then have a chance.
Man City’s matches are being unusually open, creating a 4-4 score for the first time in Pep Guardiola’s coaching career. Even 3-3 is a rare score in his coaching career.
Man City’s “generosity” is making this season’s Premier League championship race more open.