There was something a little withering to Pep Guardiola when discussing the vagaries of Manchester City’s style and any possible changes to their tactics given the appointment of Pep Lijnders as No 2.
His put downs, the content and delivery, has always been up there with the best of them and when the idea that the defensive line might be even higher than usual, Guardiola was well within his right to point out that ‘we’ve been doing that for nine years’. He just about stopped short of rolling his eyes.
Not wrong but equally, it had felt at Wolves on the opening day, and to a lesser extent during the Club World Cup, that the back four are being taught to play a more daring game. It was then suggested that perhaps it is strategy filled with more risk. ‘Maybe, we will see,’ Guardiola said. ‘I don’t know.’
The evidence of the opening two Premier League weekends suggests that the answer is yes – and John Stones provides the perfect case study.
The way in which the central defender stepped up to play Marshall Munetsi offside at Molineux told of a very specific directive to catch attackers unawares. That was for a disallowed goal and Stones had done similar on halfway too.
These were borderline calls and, as Guardiola insisted, only look genius when the team has won.
Pep Guardiola has cut a withering figure when tweaks to his style this season are discussed
With the hiring of former Liverpool No 2 Pep Lijnders has come a more daring and risky game
John Stones’ role in their win against Wolves – and defeat to Tottenham – has exemplified this
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Less so when they have not and so when Stones attempted the same trick in the build-up to Tottenham’s opening goal, scored by Brennan Johnson, at the Etihad Stadium seven days later, City’s tweak on their theme seemed significantly more vulnerable.
Borderline again, centimetres. Wildly different result and this is a result business. In two of their last three competitive games, including Al Hilal in America, City have been caught in behind to their eventual demise.
‘Against Al Hilal we didn’t control the transitions because there were three new players that we didn’t talk much and anticipate that that could happen in that game,’ Guardiola said. ‘It was a good lesson.’
Thomas Frank happily revealed that the City high line was something Spurs spent the week working on.
And this may take some time to perfect for Guardiola if they continue down the same path. This was the club’s youngest starting XI for a Premier League match in 15 years; loads of youngsters are learning the Guardiola way but also the Lijnders way too and the manager has already assessed that this defeat by Spurs – and next week’s daunting trip to Brighton, where they were humbled last year – effectively act as their pre-season.
He is talking about teaching concepts to players – City have signed nine new faces since January, the majority in the infancy of their careers – and that is going to take time. As Guardiola unusually headed straight down the tunnel after shaking Frank’s hand, he will have been mapping out who needs to learn what and how to do that as quickly as possible.
James Trafford may top the list and this was a glimpse into a post-Ederson era. Ederson, a Galatasaray target, sat on the bench. City are talking to Gianluigi Donnarumma but then he is so far removed from the Brazilian with his feet that it offers fascination into what the plan is at the start of their fabled build-up.
Without Ederson, City will have to worry about things they’ve never really had to concern themselves with over the last eight years. Trafford’s glaring error in putting Nico Gonzalez under severe pressure inside their own box, allowing Joao Palhinha to score the second, crystalised how reliable Ederson has been in those tight spaces for so long.
Marshall Munetsi’s goal for Wolves was chalked off as a result of Stones’ genius but the hosts weren’t as fortunate with the trap at the Etihad
James Trafford’s shaky performance provided a glimpse at Man City’s post-Ederson era
The Brazilian watched from the sidelines but was much-missed on the pitch on Saturday
Tottenham have an impressive record against Guardiola’s side, which shows no sign of slowing
A 22-year-old Trafford will be a work in progress. Guardiola – who appeared visibly agitated by his goalkeeper not restarting the game quickly enough as City chased the game – indicated that he has decisions to make at No 1 and the direction that is headed will only become absolutely clear next month.
Trafford had become a little unsure of himself on home debut, which is probably understandable in the circumstances, and had another couple of hairy moments when Mohammed Kudus raced clear and later charging out to deal with a bouncing ball.
It left more questions, some of them lingering from the win at Wolves, but then when all is said and done, Spurs scored with both of their first shots on target and have only lost on this ground once in the past five seasons. Maybe none of this should have been a massive surprise after all.
