In Biblical rain nine months ago, a 4-0 hammering by Tottenham left Manchester City tactically shredded and Pep Guardiola devastated in a silent Etihad stadium 48 hours after agreeing with a new two-year contract with the club, the director said: “I cannot leave.”
When Tottenham returns to the scene of last November’s rout for the start of Saturday, Guardiola will send a determined team determined to wipe the memory of this difficult day, and proving that he was prudent to extend his mandate.
The opposite of the Spurs was the last of the five consecutive defeats that presented two other championship defeats against Bournemouth and Brighton. It was not a blip but rather the start of a crisis that would have a victory in 13 games in all competitions. The sequence almost ended the defense of the title of City, threw them out of the Carabao Cup – also against the Spurs – and included defeats in the Champions League against Sporting and Juventus which indicated that City European Challenge would be founder, as it did via a defeat of the 6-3 qualifiers against Real Madrid.
The victory of the Spurs League against City was the result of the race with a rhythm at the counterattack. The host’s rearguard could not contain, while James Maddison, who scored twice, and Dejan Kuluski, his son Heung-Min, Pedro Porro and Brennan Johnson, who each registered once for the Angel Postocoglou team.
“It’s just another opportunity – revenge makes no sense,” said Guardiola about Saturday’s challenge. “Spurs have always been a difficult opponent for us.
“What happened is in the past. I remember that moment after the international break and we already came from two or three bad results and the dynamics began not to be good. It’s a new season and new vibrations and I hope it will be like last season when we created a lot in the first 20 minutes.”
City will be almost certainly without Rodri in the departure formation while the Spaniard continues his recovery of a setback after his return from the knee injury which excluded it for most of the previous campaign. His absence is a blow for Guardiola but, once again, his counterpart has his own headaches.
Thomas Frank arrives in Manchester without Kulusevski and Maddison, both injured, and perhaps for the same reason, Destiny Udogie and Yves Bissouma, who both missed the 3-0 victory last weekend against Burnley. The Danish must also rekindle morale flat after Ebelechi Eze’s decision to repel the Spurs in favor of Arsenal.
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Guardiola, who could keep James Trafford for the goal while Ederson continues to consider his future at the club, is no doubt about the direction of Frank’s management. “Thomas will do a big job as he did in Brentford,” he insisted. “He is a high level manager (capable of using) different scenarios and different alternatives concerning how they can play. I saw him and I suffered it when he was in Brentford.”
The inclination of City to win a fifth title in six seasons, and the seventh in total of Guardiola’s mandate, began with the humility of the wolves 4-0. Tijjani Reijnders, an addition of summer, impressed in a global goals display which suggested that the Dutch midfielder could be the key to the evolution of the city after the departure of Kevin de Bruyne. Along the right of the Spurs, where Kulusevski ran Riot in November, Guardiola can fight any alternative threat to the speed and defensive qualities of Rayan Aït-Nouri, another summer signature.
Then there is Rayan Cherki, another recruit that could well provide the X factor which is the brand of the best sides of Guardiola. Arriving from Lyon, Cherki, who can work like a n ° 10 or a large attacker, has artistic talent, an ability to mark – as he also did in Wolves – and a thorny character.
Erling Haaland scored twice in Molinine, suggesting that the Norwegian is back to his best, but Frank can be encouraged by his talent for involvement during the devastating loss of last year. He can also study how the city collapsed during the club World Cup there are only two competitive outings.
Then, in early July, Al-Hilal threw them from the last 16 because, once again, the high defensive line of Guardiola was exposed and that the shape of his team has disintegrated.
Al-Hilal is not the world football leviathan and the alarm sounded stronger while the fragility of the city arrived at the back of a 5-2 herd of a continental aristocrat in the form of Juventus. This also took place at the Orlando campsite stadium, where Guardiola greeted the return to the form of his players.
“Everyone has given an incredible performance. It’s been a long time since we had any performance like this on and outside the ball,” said Catalan. “The players have been hired and we are happy to beat a higher side. In the two previous games, we won, but we were miles away. I am really happy because the players must do (and do today) what we have to do to return to what we were the last decade.” Everything has disappeared against al-Hilal, so suspicion remains that the city is not yet who they were in the past.
“I don’t know,” said Guardiola when he was asked if City was back. “I like a lot of things I see in training and behavior. I would like to be a magician to find out what will happen, but I don’t know. ”
