Manchester City suffered a 1-2 defeat at the hands of Brighton & Hove Albion in a Premier League at the AmEx stadium last Saturday, November 9. Liverpool won later on the day to widen the gap at the top of table to five points.
Manchester City are now second in the league table with 23 points from 11 matches. More importantly, they have now suffered four consecutive defeats across all competitions, which has happened for the first time for any team coached by Pep Guardiola in the Spaniard’s illustrious managerial career.
Manchester City have been lacking the sharpness in their attack:
Erling Haaland is still firing and notched up his 15th goal of the season against Brighton, but the other attacking players are not playing up to the mark. İlkay Gündoğan looks a shadow of his former self, Phil Foden was decent against Brighton, but still not at his best and Mattheus Nunes looked out of sorts on the left flank, which is not his preferred position.
Kevin de Bruyne, the talismanic midfielder, made a brief appearance in the second half against Brighton, but that was not enough to exert his influence on the game. Moreover, with Ballon D’or winner Rodri injured, Brighton found it easier to slice through Manchester City’s defence in the second half, especially after the introduction of João Pedro.
Even considering their defensive frailties, what was concerning was the Cityzens’ inability to create a flurry of forward and midfield goal-scoring chances. Pep Guardiola’s men are used to scoring multiple goals in their matches, irrespective of the quality of their opponents.
However, their attacks in the first half were too dependent on Savinho, who had a good match on the right flank. There were not enough passes exchanged among the triumvirate of Haaland, Foden and Gündoğan, which meant that there was not enough pressure on the Brighton defence.
Compared to Liverpool, who have five prolific forwards in their squad, Manchester City’s resources upfront do not seem to be enough at the moment. They looked better when Mateo Kovačić moved up to join the attack, but the Croatian midfielder was playing in a holding role.
Injuries to Jérémy Doku and Jack Grealish have further aggravated the situation for the English champions. As a result, Guardiola’s men find themselves in a precarious position at the moment. They will desperately need de Bruyne to start delivering for them in the upcoming matches.
Next two matches absolutely crucial for Manchester City:
The Cityzens will face Tottenham Hotspur after the international break and then face Liverpool in a monumental match on December 1. Guardiola will hope that a few of his players will recover before the Tottenham clash.
The task of winning their fifth consecutive Premier League title looks increasingly difficult with every match at the moment for the Cityzens. Unless they pull up their socks, Liverpool seem to be the favorites to win the title at the moment. However, the Cityzens are known to rally well in the second half of the season. They will need that to happen this time around, too, to make a serious charge at the title.