How Manuel Pellegrini Should Set Manchester City Up with Sergio Aguero Back

Now is about the time when your New Year's resolution becomes the hardest thing to stick to.

Say for example you gave up red meat for the new year. The first few days are no problem. Even after two weeks, you are still flying by with eggplant Parmesan and shrimp scampi and veggie omelettes. You're all right.

Eventually, though, all the meatless meals, no matter how good they are, just remind you how much you miss a ribeye and a loaded baked potato. Especially in these cold winter months, comfort food is what you crave to get you through.

So has it been for Manchester City fans during the Great Striker Famine of the 2014/15 season. City's three strikers (Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic) were recently all unavailable at the same time, and their coincidental absences led to some fascinating circumstances.

James Milner was pressed into service at striker. Not surprisingly, he never scored in that role. But also not surprisingly, he ran his rear end off and contributed to City's offense despite not making the scoresheet.

City ground out result after result—they remain unbeaten in all competitions since Nov. 5—with goals coming from expected sources (like David Silva and Yaya Toure) and less expected providers (Fernando, Fernandinho).

Still, there is just something missing with this season's iteration of City.

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The rout.

Last season, City put up crooked numbers against opponents with regularity. Seven against Norwich City. Six against Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and West Ham United. Five against Wigan Athletic, CSKA Moscow, Blackburn, Fulham and, yes, Spurs again.

Granted, some of those blastings came against subpar competition in cup ties. But Spurs were (sort of) a viable Premier League opponent, as were Arsenal, and City beat those sides senseless.

This season, even the minnows are hanging in with City. Sheffield Wednesday were about half an hour from ushering City out of the FA Cup at the Etihad. City could only muster two goals against hapless Burnley and one away to equally pitiful Leicester City.

Of course, a lot of this was to be expected when the strikers were absent, and manager Manuel Pellegrini and his players deserve full marks for being so difficult to draw, much less beat, in the absence of their normal goalscorers.

Now that Aguero is back, though, Pellegrini and City need to rediscover their goal-happy ways and, in the process, their championship swagger.

That does not really hold true for the upcoming Champions League tie with Barcelona. Pellegrini will do well to start Aguero alone up top with five in the midfield and four at the back in that competition.

But in the Premier League, Aguero and new signing Wilfried Bony should be deployed with ruthless abandon in hopes of putting matches away quickly and decisively. City's 4-4-2, when it works, produces tennis scores in City's favor.

City have picked at salads and fish entrees for too long.

A goal feast is the way to go as the business end of the season beckons.