Manchester City vs. Tottenham: Key Issues That Will Shape Premier League Game
Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur's return to Premier League football from the international break is loaded with implications for the present and future. But also possibly influenced by the past.
Man City need three points to keep up with table-toppers Chelsea—currently five points ahead of the champions. Sixth-placed Tottenham need the win to assert themselves in the top-four. Those Champions League places being targeted by both clubs is par for the course these days.
The looming shadow of the past is the 6-0 and 5-1 thrashings City handed to Spurs last season. Those results formed part of an inferiority complex suffered by the latter against 2013-14's eventual top-four. The ability to overcome them (or inflict them again in the home side's case) leads the key issues that will shape Saturday's game.
Press conference quotes obtained firsthand.
Tottenham Must Show They Are Not Haunted by Last Season's Experiences
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"The reality—I don't remember the results," so said head coach Mauricio Pochettino in Thursday's pre-match press conference about Tottenham's losses to Man City last season.
"This is another season, another philosophy, another game. We need to arrive Saturday with the belief in our philosophy and our style and try to get the points. That is the more important thing. It is not important now to think in the past because it is the past."
Despite Pochettino's assertion that Tottenham's defeats to Manchester City last season are not a lingering problem for his side, they still have to prove otherwise.
It was not just an issue against City in the previous campaign. There were also humiliating defeats to Chelsea and Liverpool, while—despite better performances than against the other top-four sides—they failed to take anything off Arsenal.
Spurs' north London derby draw last month could point to some improvement in the big games, but they have also already lost 3-0 to Liverpool. Pochettino will hope that was more to do with early season rustiness than the first sign of further struggles against England's best teams.
The Argentinian is right to point out there are differences at Spurs, notably his presence as boss and all that entails. The nature of the defeats to City, suffered by many of his current players, will not easily be got over, though.
"Last season’s games are in the past and in football you always have to focus on the present and look to the future," captain Younes Kaboul, a veteran of those humblings told Tottenham's official website.
"We need to repeat the same performance as we produced against Arsenal. In these big games we need to do something to show everyone what we are capable of."
The intent is clearly there, but Spurs have to show they will not cower if something goes against them. Another capitulation is not what they need if they want to prove the past is indeed the past.
Man City Look to Get Back on Track at Home
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For Manuel Pellegrini's side, Saturday is a chance to reaffirm their self-belief in front of their fans after a patchy run of home from.
Save for thrashing Sheffield Wednesday 7-0 in the Capital One Cup, Man City have not won at the Etihad Stadium since August.
Given they have since only played there twice in the league and once in Europe, it is not a major cause for concern.
A point off Chelsea was not a bad result in itself, but following the 1-0 loss to Stoke City a few weeks earlier, it has left them having to play catch-up. Dropping points in one of their home Champions League fixtures, to Roma, has left them on the back foot there too.
The capabilities of this Man City side are not in doubt. They comfortably put Liverpool in their place in August. Doing the same against a testing, albeit still inferior opponent like Spurs, could be just what they need to get back on track here.
The champions drew and lost only one game each last season in the league, beating the other 17 opponents to cross the line on their visit to the blue half of Manchester. Replicating such title-winning form is still possible. This weekend is a good place to start.
Can Spurs Maintain Their Recent Improvements in Defence?
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Tottenham's 1-1 draw with Arsenal last month was marked by an improved defensive performance. They then did enough to keep out Southampton in a 1-0 home win.
If they are to get anything in Manchester, they will need to be at least as focused and sharp at the back as they were in those two games. Probably more so.
Then-manager Andre Villas-Boas's perplexing decision to change things up at Man City last year needlessly messed with a configuration that had been settling well. Fitness permitting, Pochettino is unlikely to mess with the back-four that finished against Southampton, and hope that consistency helps his side stay solid.
Jan Vertonghen's return to Spurs' league line-up has undoubtedly helped. A calmer personality than the man he replaced, Vlad Chiriches, the Belgian is a better centre-back partner for the skipper Kaboul.
At his best (as he was against Arsenal) the Frenchman is a motivated presence who clears his lines promptly and aggressively. On lesser days he is still prone to lapses of concentration, such as the one that allowed Saints attacker Sadio Mane a chance to equalise last time out. Vertonghen does not exacerbate those tendencies, while his reading of the game complements the more basic, but equally necessary, instinct of Kaboul to get the ball away.
City's attack, led by striker Sergio Aguero, cannot be allowed such freedom. The Argentina international has already scored six times in 2014-15. His three goals against Spurs last season should be plenty reminder for Kaboul and Vertonghen they need to be wide awake this weekend.
After he replaced the injured Kyle Naughton, Eric Dier was as disciplined as we have seen him in the Saints win. He and fellow full-back Danny Rose must rein in their attacking instincts even more against the wide threats of City.
A full-back counterpart like Pablo Zabaleta bombing forward, David Silva or James Milner floating out there to get behind them and link up with an attacker—Dier and Rose cannot risk getting caught out of position against such threats that remain as potent as ever for the Sky Blues.
Spurs will not want to get pegged back for the match's entirety and invite continuous pressure, either. But their full-backs must pick and choose their moments to get forward wisely, or risk the consequences.
Proven vs. Unproven in Midfield
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On Saturday, Tottenham's young midfielder Ryan Mason could come up against an example he would do well to learn from.
Manchester City's Frank Lampard has been one of English football's best midfielders for over a decade. Now 36, he has continued to prove his enduring class this season, adding even more depth to one of the Premier League's best midfields.
As noted by BBC Sport in their match preview, Pellegrini could play Lampard against Spurs if he decides to rest Yaya Toure, who only returned from international duty on Friday.
He cannot go wrong either way.
Either's driving runs and solid, purposeful passing will be key tools in helping push Spurs back into their own area. As seen with recent goals, both possess the finishing ability to make the most of the opportunities created by the sustained pressure that invariably follows.
It took a while against Aston Villa last time out, but the late goals that won them the game were testament to the sustained drive from this midfield.
With the likely support of Fernando behind them, and the buzzing but calculated options of players like Aguero and Silva to combine with, whoever might start out of Lampard or Toure will prove a handful for their Spurs counterparts.
Tottenham's likely midfield pairing of Mason and Etienne Capoue have played well in their team's recent games. The fledgling partnership has hinted at Pochettino finally finding the balance of defensive and attacking work that any team needs at its core. Definitely so in his own 4-2-3-1 system that places a greater emphasis on the front four.
Certainly as a pair, Capoue and Mason are still unproven in comparison to the players they could come up against tomorrow lunchtime. They have started well together, though, and should relish the prospect of such a competitive test.
