Pep Guardiola on Worst Managerial Run but Can Take Positives from Derby Loss
For the first time in his managerial career, Pep Guardiola has gone six matches without a victory, as his much-changed Manchester City side lost out in a tight encounter at Old Trafford in the EFL Cup. The 1-0 defeat to Manchester United left him with questions to answer, though there were some mitigating circumstances in the loss.
While City’s team was strong enough to have won the tie, it was notably not the best XI available. Youngsters Aleix Garcia and Pablo Maffeo were given the chance to impress from the off, which they undoubtedly did, while Willy Caballero, Vincent Kompany, Fernando, Leroy Sane and Jesus Navas all made rare starts, as Guardiola made nine changes against a nearly full-strength United.
Speaking to reporters afterwards, though, the manager showed no sign of regret at his selection: "I'm proud of the young players and how they played. At that level, you need to be more clinical with the last pass, but it's difficult against United. We are happy. I want to try to win, but now we'll focus on the next competitions."
Clearly, the EFL Cup isn’t top of the Catalan’s priorities. A defeat in any Manchester derby can smart, however, and perhaps a few might think he misjudged the tone of the fixture given how seriously his rivals took the game.
Each manager was under pressure and in need of a victory at kick-off, but the lineups suggested Jose Mourinho was the more desperate for it, even though Guardiola was threatened by his worst managerial run.
The result means the City boss is likely to garner no small amount of attention, and it’s easy to suggest his side are heading towards a crisis—even if that’s something of a media buzzword these days.
However, despite the loss, there is still little for the Catalan to worry about. His team remains top of the Premier League, and, despite a month-long wobble, they are also in good stead for qualification in the knockout phase of the Champions League.
Perhaps the form guide gives him more to ponder rather than any big worries.
Afterwards, he didn’t seem too concerned and shrugged it off. "Yeah, it’s six games—not a good situation—but we are out of one competition. We have three still," reported Rob Pollard of the club's official website. "We are going to see. I [am] happy with the players, and we are going to try in the future."
That it was an even contest at Old Trafford for nearly an hour is another positive for the City boss given the lineups, though it has to be said that Guardiola must be feeling a little sick of taking positives instead of results from recent matches. After Juan Mata opened the scoring 10 minutes after half-time, City didn’t manage to threaten David De Gea in the home side’s goal.
In truth, they didn’t threaten him throughout the 90 minutes—Kelechi Iheanacho’s header in the opening stages should have, but the ball bounced well over the bar, as he mistimed his leap. De Gea could have watched the rest of the game from a deckchair despite the visitors seeing slightly more possession than the hosts and a lot of the game being played in the United half.
Little of it was played in the United box.
City dominated the first period but showed little penetration. It always felt like the visitors were in control of the game, and young Garcia was pulling the strings with some cute one-twos in the middle and sweeping passes to the flanks. It’s early to say, but the signs are good, and there was clearly David Silva’s influence in his play.
Even so, United managed to keep their rivals at arm’s length for the majority of the half—with a penalty claim for a foul by Michael Carrick on Garcia the only other real threat.
When the home side turned up the heat in the early stages of the second half, City looked unsettled. Captain Kompany had been replaced by Aleksandar Kolarov, with the manager later confirming to reporters that the Belgian was too tired to continue.
City’s organisation had gone, and United capitalised, first drawing an excellent save from Caballero as he touched Paul Pogba’s effort on to the post and then finding the net through Mata. City complained of a foul in the buildup, but defensive errors left them short again—Nicolas Otamendi didn’t cover himself in glory as he got lost under the ball, and the goalscorer was allowed a clear run into the area.
Defensive fragility has underlined Guardiola’s poor run of form.
Composure regained, City slipped back into a similar pattern. They had the ball but did little with it, as they struggled to break through an organised defence again. Even as the manager introduced experience, with Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero joining from the bench, his side showed little threat.
The Catalan didn’t seem too fazed by his team’s poor form after the match, telling reporters:
"Every match is different, I need to analyse them all. Every team has streaks of good results and bad results. The strange thing is after seven years as a manager, it happens now. But congratulations to United. They made a good performance. We had chances on the counter attack and we control their long balls with our four boys. I am happy with the young players. No regrets.
"
But even with a rotated side, there are still growing questions for the manager to answer. Why were City so toothless in attack? Why did they control so much of the ball but fail to pose a threat? Why is the defence continuing to look unsettled when under pressure?
The EFL Cup defeat did perhaps throw up a solution for Guardiola’s right-back problem, however. After Pablo Zabaleta joined Bacary Sagna in the treatment room when he was forced off injured in the 4-0 defeat to Barcelona, the City boss switched to a back three for Sunday’s draw with Southampton.
It left his defenders looking a little uneasy, something that happened when the manager used the same system the weekend before in another 1-1 draw—this one against Everton.
Maffeo’s contributions in the defeat to United on Wednesday weren’t insignificant. He displayed great athleticism to make several last-ditch tackles and blocks, though his positional awareness did allow a couple of the home side’s crosses into the box. Nevertheless, he’s still young and learning—and he could be the key to giving the defence a more settled shape at West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
That’s now a match that can’t come soon enough for City and their fans. The club needs to get back to winning ways, be it with a dominant display and a thumping of the Baggies or a stuffy own goal in injury time off a defender’s backside.
While there have been positives to take from recent bad results, there is a rot beginning to set in. Guardiola will want to nip that in the bud fairly quickly.
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