Is Guardiola... past his prime?

Last season, Man City were effectively dethroned after a run of four consecutive defeats in the Premier League. They dropped out of the top four after that run and never managed to climb back into third place. Before that run, they had won 7 and drawn 2 of their first 9 league matches, leading the table in 5 of those 9 games.

The story shows that when Pep Guardiola's team suffers a series of defeats, it's very difficult for them to recover. But when they succeed, Guardiola's team usually wins effortlessly, winning continuously, as if it were a matter of course. Man City isn't the kind of inconsistent team that alternates wins and losses unexpectedly, like Tottenham or Arsenal.

That's because Guardiola's coaching style is primarily philosophical. His approach turns the team into a well-oiled machine; once it's in gear, the opponent can't stop it. But when the machine breaks down, it's easy for a whole series of defeats to follow, because he's not a super-skilled coach who can adjust tactics during a match. Nor is he the type of coach who is tactically flexible.

Coach Guardiola is facing difficulties at Man. City.

Photo: Reuters

The current situation: Man City is a broken machine. Bad news for Man City fans as they face Manchester United and Arsenal in the next two rounds. The good news is the Premier League is temporarily suspended for two weeks for international matches. Will Guardiola have enough time to readjust things, help Man City recover, and get back into the race for the top spot?

Over 30 years have passed since a team lost two of their first three matches and still won the Premier League title. That team was Alex Ferguson's Manchester United in the very first season of the Premier League era, 1992-1993. Back then, MU was unbeatable partly because there were no serious rivals (only Arsenal from the late 1990s onwards were significant). Now there are too many strong teams in the Premier League – a league with six representatives in the Champions League. Manchester City will find it very difficult to climb up the standings after their two consecutive defeats (0-2 against Tottenham and 1-2 against Brighton).

Leading Tottenham and Brighton are Thomas Frank and Fabian Hurzeler, respectively. Neither has a significant reputation at the highest level of football. But they've both beaten Guardiola before. And now they're beating him again. Is it because they understand Guardiola's football philosophy and coaching style? In theory, Pep Guardiola is a great coach – perhaps even the best in the world . But he rarely, if ever, changes. Everyone has their... time in the park.

A hugely busy transfer window has just concluded with record sales in the home of football. Liverpool spent nearly half a billion euros on new stars. Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Tottenham, and Newcastle also spent heavily. Manchester City seems to be lagging behind in this regard. And although they strengthened their squad with the talented goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, he was never the goalkeeper who fit Guardiola's philosophy (he must be good at playing with his feet). The future of "Man City" is starting to look bleak after just three rounds of matches.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/phai-chang-guardiola-het-thoi-185250902190847901.htm