Anorher Manchester City defeat happened, as they lost 1-2 to Aston Villa at the Villa Park on December 21. They then drew 1-1 with Everton last Thursday and beat Leicester City 2-0 last Sunday. The English champions have now lost nine of their last 14 matches across all competitions, which can be an atrocious run even for a Premier League mid-table club, let alone for one of the best teams in Europe.
The Cityzens’ fall from grace has been so abrupt and so complete that their flaws are now being highlighted and put under some serious scrutiny. It is not of much use to be wise after the event, but one has to use hindsight in finding out the reasons of the sudden demise of Guardiola’s mighty empire.
In this article, we will take a look at three faulty decisions he seems to have made, which is costing him a lot. Let us get on with the list.
3 Poor Pep Guardiola Decisions Leading to Manchester City Defeat
Opting not to have any proper left-back in the squad
Manchester City have tried to manage by playing Joško Gvardiol as the left-back, but the young Croat cannot be trusted to play crosses on a regular basis with his left foot. Guardiola has also played Matheus Nunes as the left wing-back at times, but even the latter does not have the ability to play crosses with his left foot.
Not to mention that Kyle Walker is in decline as a right-back and plays as a right-sided centre-back more often these days. Rico Lewis, Walker’s understudy, plays in a hybrid role and hence, is not in a position to play crosses from the right as well.
It means that the Cityzens are without the services of genuine full-backs, who are capable of delivering crosses into the opposition penalty box. It is now hard to believe that Guardiola decided to part ways with both João Cancelo and Oleksandr Zinchenko, both of whom could play as a left-back, not so long ago.
2. Coming a damp squib with the signing of Jack Grealish
It was one of the much-publicized signings of the recent past, as City signed Grealish from Aston Villa for 100 million GBP. Three and a half seasons later, the 29-year-old winger has a measly total of 14 goals in 142 matches for the Cityzens, which does not justify his huge price-tag.
Grealish once again looked ordinary against his former club on Saturday and is yet to score a goal this season in 17 matches. It points to the obvious fact that Guardiola has either made a wrong choice in signing him or has failed to develop him as a player.
3. Not having a proper back-up for Erling Haaland ensured another Manchester City defeat
All the other teams in Premier League have understood that they cannot contain Haaland if they allow him and his teammates enough space in the final third. Hence, they almost always put bodies behind the ball and crowd the penalty box with defenders to deny the hulking Norwegian any space within it.
It is testimony to Haaland’s quality that he has still been able to score 19 goals this season so far.
However, it is quite clear that even a striker of Haaland’s quality cannot bail the Cityzens out every time. Pep’s squad had a player like Julián Álvarez until the end of last season, who often used to partner Haaland upfront. However, with the Argentine forward moving to Atletico Madrid this season, the Cityzens no longer have that option. Hence, the goals have dried up for them, with none of the other players being able to reach five goals yet this season. With another Manchester City defeat, a January run will make or break the season.