Man.City 3.0 before the 'treble'

In 6 seasons, coach Pep Guardiola brought Man.City 5 Premier League titles. Domination is obvious. But when talking about dominance in top football, people always imagine a style of play that is not only high-class but also stable. It is easier to imagine this because Mr. Guardiola is the type of coach who works according to philosophy.

But now, as Man.City prepares for their first Champions League crown (thereby affirming their status as a great team), they have become completely different. Welcome fans to a Man.City 3.0, still under the hands of coach Guardiola! Immediately after winning the Premier League championship in the 2017-2018 season, Mr. Guardiola immediately successfully defended the title in the following season, by further improving the playing style that Man Xanh had shown in the previous season, to the point of automation. Winning all 9 final matches, the Champions League champion of that season, Liverpool, still could not close the 1-point gap with Man.City, and had to accept being the "great runner-up" (at that time, Liverpool finished the season with 97 points).

Man.City is becoming very "scary"

Man.City's tiki-taka style of play in the 2017-2019 period was "unstoppable". Sergio Aguero played as a centre forward with Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling on the wings. Kevin de Bruyne and David Silva provided assists behind. Man.City's goals came from every position possible to score.

Then, the "false number 9" role appeared in the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 seasons. Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden made waves. Commentators were free to gossip. But no one could say convincingly: Man.City does not have or does not need a real striker. Man Xanh still won the Premier League, that's enough. Once, Mr. Guardiola answered a press conference before the reporter spoke. "Does Man.City need to buy a striker in the upcoming transfer window? You were going to ask that, right? Next question please." That's Man.City 2.0!

Now, in a kind of spiral development, Man.City has a top-notch center forward, superior to Aguero. Well, no need to say more about Erling Haaland. But, what is Man.City 3.0 like?

Never before have we seen Man City counterattack as much and as well as this season. When winning 3-1 at Arsenal in the Premier League, Man.City only kept the ball... 36.5%. Unbelievable. That is the lowest ball possession rate in Mr. Guardiola's entire coaching career. The notorious attacking midfielder Bernardo Silva plays left-back. The central defenders fight for the ball. And Man.City always gets the ball to Haaland as quickly as possible.

Of course, Man.City this season is not necessarily a counter-attacking team. They can play in any style. How to predict? "The treble" is very difficult to escape.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/mancity-30-truoc-cu-an-ba-185230605135651558.htm