“A little yes. We are already changing things.” These were the words of Pep Guardiola when asked if the elimination in the Champions League was a cycle end. And Manchester City has gone from being the best team on the continent to A fragile set.
The modern football cycle
Current football is like computer science. Everything goes very fast. Everything is analyzed at the moment, the rivals counteract you before and the continuous demand shortens the cycles of the successful teams. And this is where you have to look for the first explanation, in the new tempos of current sport. The picture Citizen Show clear signals of exhaustion. It is difficult to keep the pace and concentration every three days. Something that enters within the logical parameters of a team that has won six Premier League and a Champions League. What is surprising is the accused and abruptness of the downturn this season.
Between the idea and profiles
In football there is a problem above the rest. Because the City has stayed halfway in its game identity. An identity with the permanent seal of Pep Guardiola and that has always gone through great proactivity with both the ball and without it. Right now, it is a team that does not press up effectively and that, in turn, is also exposed with the very high defensive line. For example, the Citizens They did not get a single high recovery in the first part of the second leg of the Champions League in the Bernabéu. But, in addition, the first two Madridistas arrived in plays in which the rival attacks the back of the English team. Something that responds directly to the current profiles of the template. After Walker’s departure and the loss of benefits of its defensive struts (Ruben days, stones or gvardiol), the City no longer has any corrector defense to gain races to the space against world first swords. Nor up, where the vital state of Bruyne, Gündogan or Bernardo Silva has left the voracity of the equipment in the high pressure and after losing the ball.
No margin to surprise
Another point to understand the great City was the tactical variety. Guardiola began the project revolutionizing the Premier League with the position and combination game, then went on to play with false nine (Ferran Torres or Foden), then added the surprise of the sides inside, with the arrival of Haaland adapted the choral game to The figure of a nine and, in the most recent version, chose to create superiority with a central (stones) being the fourth midfielder. That is, raise new tactical stimuli to be undetectable. Something that is not happening this season. Both for rhythm and structure, the City has become predictable.
Lack of depth and solidity
All these factors have reversed in a marked decrease in the two phases of the game. The Citizens They accumulate 52 goals in favor and 35 against in the 25 games played in the domestic competition so far in what an average of 2.08 goals means in favor. It is the first season of Guardiola in which your team does not reach an average of 2.2 goals. But, the most shocking, it is appreciated in the defensive. In none of the seasons with the coach in command, the 0.90 goals had been passed by a game while, in this 2024-2025, the ratio rises to an unfavorable balance of 1.46. That is, the City has gone from being a solid team to a weak set. A revealing symptom of the moment. As is the lack of depth shown in many of its matches. Most of their most common attackers exceed the game at the foot and forget the ruptures of space. Only Savinho and Doku seem to pull this resource. The first is the only one who plays with some regular. Marmoush’s recent arrival has to be used to win in this aspect.
The Rodri Factor
A player can never explain the causes of the performance of a team. Because this sport depends on so many factors that would be unreal. But if any case approaches this globality is Rodri’s for Guardiola. And, when in the 21st minute of the match against Arsenal on September 22 the midfielder fell injured, the City was the leader of the Premier. And from there, many of the current problems emerged suddenly. The decline of the current Golden Ball has caused a butterfly effect. Because his influence in the game was overwhelming. Because of his perfect positioning, he was the key man for the correct occupation of the spaces. Also a distributor that gave meaning and security to possessions (88 average passes per game to a reliability of 93%). And finally, intuition and legs for high recovery and replicues. Vital values all of them for the way of playing City. In addition, its absence has increased collateral damage because there is no substitute for its profile in the template. Nico’s arrival responds to that fault.
Individualities decide less
From the collective the individual emerges. And players who had marked the differences throughout these years no longer. Kevin de Bruyne is averaging 1.9 shots and 1.6 key passes per game when it was normally above the three on average in both aspects. Bernardo Silva has lowered about ten average shares for meeting regarding its usual numbers and is no longer so effective in dribble (0.7 successful per game). Ruben Dias is more vulnerable, Gündogan has only scored two goals when he always signed double figures and even the scoring frequency of Erling Haaland is high but is not among his best averages (goal every 96 minutes).
Mental aspect
And finally, we must point to the mentality. The current Manchester City is an insecure block from the mental. The Citizens They have accused each blow exaggerated and, most players who previously felt invincible, now do not believe.
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