Aleksandar Kolarov's Form Puts Manchester City Future in Doubt

A number of Manchester City players have turned their ailing form around in recent weeks.

After the 2-2 draw with Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road, where City were lucky to escape with a point in the midst of a run of just two wins in seven, their season looked to be in some trouble. Chelsea were eight points clear and looking far superior to Manuel Pellegrini’s side.

The November international break helped them refocus, and their form since then has been exceptional. Emerging with 11 wins in 12 games has wiped out Chelsea’s lead and seen them move into the last 16 of the Champions League.

The likes of Fernandinho, Gael Clichy and Yaya Toure, in particular, have turned their form around drastically. For different reasons and to various extents, each of those players were struggling early in the season but now look back to their best, and City look capable of retaining the title because of their reversal in fortunes.

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However, while those around him are enjoying a renaissance, Aleksandar Kolarov continues to struggle.

His latest display, in the FA Cup third round against Sheffield Wednesday, was his poorest performance in a long time.

Kolarov’s career at City has never really settled. He arrived in 2010 after Roberto Mancini sanctioned a £17 million move for a left-back who had impressed at Lazio in Serie A with his ability to get forward and contribute to attacks.

However, he initially underwhelmed. From a defensive standpoint, he was a liability, and his attacking instincts weren’t sharp enough to earn him a reprieve. For the money City paid, which was substantial for a left-back and enough to attract one of the best in the world in that position, he seemed somewhat lacking in certain areas.

In his first three seasons, he made just 56 league appearances, never once really looking capable of being City’s No. 1 in his position.

However, the arrival of Pellegrini ushered a new style of football.

The tense, somewhat restricted attacking side of City’s game that underwhelmed during Mancini’s final year in charge was replaced by an ultra-attacking formation that encouraged free-flowing football.

Kolarov, for the first time at City, appeared to be flourishing.

He was often preferred to Clichy, whose performance level had dipped after signing a new long-term contract, and he began to showcase his attacking ability on a regular basis. The quality of his deliveries was excellent. He was creating goals while the defensive side of his game improved, too.

Old trends have since returned, though, with his lack of positional sense and poor concentration blighting his game. Against Wednesday—a real opportunity to impress after being given the nod to start—he was nothing short of appalling, caught too high up the field on a number of occasions with a poor touch and lack of confidence denying him the opportunity to make an impression going forward.

He’s only started six Premier League games and one Champions League match all season, with Clichy now reconfirmed as City’s first-choice left-back.

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Perhaps his calf injury, which kept him out for five weeks earlier in the season, has contributed to his current malaise—a period on the sidelines which has left him on the periphery, playing fleetingly and as a result overly keen to impress when given a chance.

Or perhaps, at 29, it’s time to accept Kolarov simply isn’t of the requisite quality for a side with domestic and European ambitions. 

The success stories within the City squad this season are proof that players can turn their form around quickly and make a positive impact on the season. The fear with Kolarov, though, is he simply isn’t good enough to ever be the top-quality defender City thought they’d signed back in 2010.

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 are obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter: @RobPollard.