Manchester City suffered yet another defeat on Saturday, March 8, in the Premier League to Nottingham Forest.
The win moved Forest four points ahead of City in the table after 28 matches.
Chelsea secured a 1-0 victory over Leicester City on Sunday, March 9, propelling them into fourth place in the Premier League standings.
The loss leaves Pep Guardiola’s team in fifth place, trailing Chelsea by two points after 28 matches.
The Cityzens’ inability to score in another match signifies a deep-rooted problem their much-vaunted attack has been facing for quite some time now.
Order Has Reigned Supreme at Manchester City
Manchester City have pressed and passed so clinically and precisely under Guardiola that they have frequently induced comparisons with a well-oiled machine.
Guardiola’s men have topped the charts in terms of scoring goals in the Premier League in each of the last five completed seasons.
Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, İlkay Gündoğan, Phil Foden, and Rodri have metaphorically squeezed the life out of their opposition on the football pitch time and time again.
The reigning champions have started with a 4-2-3-1 formation and then switched to a 3-2-2-3 or a 3-2-4-1 to surprise their opponents often.
De Bruyne has orchestrated countless moves with precise through passes and inch-perfect crosses, while Bernardo and Foden have expertly cut inside through the channels, and Rodri has dismantled teams with his pinpoint long balls.
However, the things have always been so orderly and precise that the Cityzens have hardly felt the need for a sudden and abrupt change in their plans.
They have not required rare flashes of individual brilliance like a 30-40 yard solo run or a scorching shot from 30 yards out.
In the absence of Rodri, they have become much more vulnerable to counter-attacks from the opposition.
As they rely on order, they have tried to solve their problems in a structured way, modifying the nuances of the passing manual that originated at Ajax and Barcelona.
However, the moments of genius have been few and far between, giving way to predictable and repetitive moves in the midfield, thus yielding very little.
The performances have continued to remain bleak in Rodri’s absence, and the irony is that City will have to devise a way out in a structured way only.
Guardiola has coached them to follow a system to the core and the players cannot be expected to come up with something radical.
Omar Marmoush is the only one of the Cityzens’ new signings that has shown the tendency to try something out of the box, something flashy.
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Three Crucial Matches Ahead
Now that they are out of all competitions except the Premier League, Guardiola’s men have only the league to focus on.
Their next three matches are against Brighton, Leicester City, and Manchester United.
Given their current form, it is difficult to confidently say that the English champions will secure all nine points from these fixtures.
Finishing outside the top four is simply unacceptable for a team of this calibre.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, but Manchester City don’t seem to have one up their sleeve.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / Pro Sports Images
Recording Date: 08.03.2025