Manchester City's 5 Biggest Weaknesses to Exploit in the 2014/15 Season
Manchester City ought not to have five big weaknesses.
Not given the ridiculous money spent in assembling the squad, they shouldn't. Not with the dozens of league matches and cup ties they play against significantly inferior competition every season.
It should not be like this, but unfortunately it is.
City's three Premier League matches thus far were actually a fairly representative sample of who they are. City can gut out a road victory at a place like St. James' Park, and they can look nearly unstoppable at home against a powerful side like Liverpool.
They can also sleepwalk through nearly 100 minutes against Stoke at the Etihad and come away with nothing.
There are no perfect sides in football but for the money poured into putting this City group together they probably should be much closer to perfection than they are.
5. The Goalkeeper
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Joe Hart entered this season knowing that Manchester City had acquired Willy Caballero nominally to back Hart up but quite possibly to take his job.
Knowing this, Hart lasted five halves before committing his first costly error of the new season.
Mame Diouf's breakaway goal gave Stoke City all three points at the Etihad right before the most recent international break. Danny Pugsley was harsh but fair in the Metro as to Hart's effort to stop Diouf's shot:
"City were caught on the counter, Diouf allowed to run unchallenged for the entirety of City’s half–a static Fernandinho in particular culpable–before slotting past Hart. I say past, more through Hart whose footwork was questionable. The goal, despite Pellegrini being non-committal in the post-match press conference, will do nothing to stem talk of an impending goalkeeping controversy.
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After managing around and through Hart's dodgy form in the first half of last season, Hart could barely blame Pellegrini if he made a change between the posts.
Chelsea are not going to be moribund again this season and spotting them a three-point lead in the table this soon was not in Pellegrini's plan to repeat as league champions.
4. Road Form
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Manchester City's away record in the Premier League in 2013-14 was not the league's best. Arsenal earned that distinction by winning 11, drawing two and losing six in the league.
Manchester City's 10-4-5 mark was equaled by Chelsea and by Manchester United. The Red Devils were actually better away from Old Trafford last season, which doubtlessly contributed to the sacking of David Moyes.
That Manchester City managed to win 10 times away from the Etihad was all the more remarkable given how awful their away form was at the beginning of the season. Losses at Cardiff City, Aston Villa and Sunderland were more or less unforgivable, as was the Joe Hart blunder that cost Manchester City a draw at Chelsea.
The Sky Blues' next three matches away from home are at Arsenal, Aston Villa and Hull City. Two of those are eminently winnable and the match with Arsenal should be a draw. If City take seven points from those three road tests, perhaps they can consider their road woes fixed for the moment.
Anything less, though, and opposing sides will circle City's date on their calendars looking to take the champions down yet another peg or two.
3. Central Defense
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By now, Manchester City supporters were surely thinking that they would no longer be fretting about the central defense.
Vincent Kompany is healthy and playing well. If only the same could be said for new centre-back Eliaquim Mangala.
Mangala has yet to play for City, so as yet there is no way to know if Mangala is fit, much less whether he can synchronise with Kompany at the back in the high defensive line Manuel Pellegrini prefers.
Not to alarm you, but City's Champions League campaign starts at the Allianz Arena in a week's time. We have all seen what Martin Demichelis is capable of at the highest level of play.
Mangala cannot get fit and entrenched in the City XI soon enough.
2. Complacency
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Manchester City lost all three points to Stoke City at the Etihad. Not to Chelsea. Not to Arsenal. Not to Liverpool.
To (expletive) Stoke.
Because he basically had no choice, City manager Manuel Pellegrini was pretty breezy about the setback, per the club's website:
"It is always disappointing to lose three points here at home. It was very important for our team to try and win the nine points before the international break, and it is not good to finish with a defeat. But these games always happen once a year and today it happened to our team.
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This palaver from Pellegrini is like hearing a fellow golfer ask for a mulligan that he can use anywhere during the 18 holes, getting it, and using it on the first fairway.
"I don’t agree we were casual," Pellegrini continued. "I think we were very patient, we tried to create space, and Stoke defended very well."
Oh well, never mind, then. Sounds like it's all taken care of.
1. Bus Trouble
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There are probably only three Premier League sides this season who should try to run and gun with Manchester City.
Chelsea can surely do it, though knowing Jose Mourinho they probably won't. Arsenal have the speed and the tactics but may not have the defensive spine; that goes double for Liverpool.
Beyond those three clubs, the rest of the Premier League ought to play every match against Manchester City the way Stoke City did.
Park the bus.
Manchester City just love to counter-attack, and they are really, really good at it. They are also not bad on free-kicks in dangerous areas.
But against a resolute defense that cedes possession and dares them to find an opening, Manchester City are too often one pass and one shot short of earning a result.
That Stoke City film of Manchester City looking so bereft at home is all over the league now.
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