Manchester City Must Avoid European Distraction and Complacency vs. Tottenham

There are many ways of measuring Manchester City’s improvement since the takeover by Sheikh Mansour in 2008: the value of their squad, the silverware in the trophy cabinet, their style of play. Whichever metric you choose, City have gone from underachievers to one of the most dominant sides in English football.

One slightly less obvious footnote which underlines their improvement is their record against Tottenham.

For years, City seriously struggled against the London club. Things are now very different.

Three wins, 15 defeats and four draws was all City had to show for their 22 matches against Spurs prior to ADUG takeover. It was an appalling sequence of results that saw every City fan dread fixtures against them.

Even immediately after the takeover, before Mansour’s riches had been allowed time to bear fruit on the pitch, Tottenham were still a bogey side. The 1-0 win at the Etihad in May 2010, a result which denied City a place in the Champions League, was one of the club’s most disappointing nights in recent memory.

In fact, they won all four of the games between the two sides in the two seasons after Mansour’s arrival.

Since then, though, the picture has altered dramatically. Only one defeat—the 3-1 reverse at White Hart Lane in 2013—has soured their record, with six wins and a draw demonstrating their superiority over the side who for so long were the cause of so much anguish.

With that being said, it’s a record which cannot lead to complacency ahead of a game with an improving Spurs side.

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Under Mauricio Pochettino, Tottenham have made some subtle alterations which have seen them improve somewhat. It’s early days, and there have been setbacks, but their higher intensity pressing game and positional discipline makes them a more difficult proposition. They won’t be coming to the Etihad and rolling over.

With City set to leave for Moscow straight after the game to prepare for their crucial Champions League match with CSKA on Tuesday—a game which will go a long way in determining whether or not they can qualify for the last 16—they must resist being distracted.  

Their Champions League record has once again come under scrutiny after two insipid displays in the competition put their qualification hopes in serious doubt. City, it seems, lack self-belief in the competition, failing to ever really show the same kind of dominance they do in the Premier League when performing on the European stage.

The temptation may well be to look ahead to that game, but with City five points behind Chelsea already, Saturday’s league match is of huge importance. It may be early days in the Premier League, but Jose Mourinho is a manager who rarely relinquishes a sizable lead, regardless of when it is established.

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Mourinho’s men certainly look a more formidable proposition than anything City had to deal with during last season’s title-winning campaign. Seeing off an overachieving Liverpool side was one thing; overhauling this Chelsea side—with their mix of power, creativity and goals—is quite another.

They undoubtedly outperformed everyone else in this summer's transfer window, and their start, which has seen them win six and draw one of their opening seven league fixtures, suggests they have been buoyed by their new arrivals.

Saturday's lunchtime kick-off is therefore a hugely important game for City. They will desperately hoping their recent hoodoo over Spurs continues.

Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2014-15 season. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.