Pep Guardiola: Should Man City boss feel under pressure after his side slumped so far behind champions Liverpool?

Paul Higham - Pep's not perfect

There are levels of success – Pep’s undoubtedly a great coach, perhaps the greatest around right now and one of the all-time best as well. A true pioneer of the game and should be lauded as such. Even the greats though have weaknesses.

One of Guardiola’s great strengths is his stubbornness, his unwavering belief in what he does and how his team’s play – even with a so-so first season at City when many thought it wasn’t possible to play his brand of football in the Premier League he persisted. He stuck to his guns and was proved right in emphatic fashion with their 100-point season.

That stubborn streak can work both ways though, and that’s undoubtedly to blame for City’s drop-off this season. Now, before everyone starts, we have to qualify this by saying that City aren’t any old club these days. The finances are different, the players are different and the expectations are different.

City could yet win three trophies for the second year running – and the Champions League is the one Guardiola wants more than anything else. He has to win the big one without Lionel Messi to really be among the true greats of the game. He knows this, but I’m not having any talk of him prioritising that trophy above the league.

He could quite easily walk off with that this season, and then frankly who would care about how far behind Liverpool they are in the league? Not Man City fans that’s for sure, who would suddenly regain their love of the Champions League if they won it – if not a lowering of their disdain for UEFA.

The point here though is how Guardiola has performed in this Premier League season in isolation, and how he’s managed to let his team slip so far off the pace of the leaders.

If you want to put it frankly, after pipping Liverpool by a point in a thrilling title race, Guardiola let his captain and talisman Vincent Kompany, one of the main reasons they won the title, leave the club without bringing in a replacement.

Yes, that Aymeric Laporte injury was a hammer blow, but the fact remains that a stubborn Guardiola would rather play Fernandinho at centre half than admit he needed to buy another defender. That also took his chief anchor out of his best position.

A Sergio Aguero replacement also needs to be found, as they don’t look the same without him and are guilty at times of wasting too many scoring opportunities.

In plain facts, after beating Liverpool last season, City have spent the thick end of £150m while the Reds spent next to nothing yet end up 23 points ahead. And, yes, Liverpool could break records this season so there’s no disgrace in coming second – but not by this much.

City’s 66 points after 33 games is 17 worse than last year and a whopping 21 fewer than their centurion year. It’s just one point more than in Guardiola’s first season.

Those nine defeats is also their worst return under Guardiola – with Manuel Pellegrini only losing 10 in his final year at the helm. City still look the best side in the league on their day, but they also look more fragile than ever when things don’t go right.

If Jose Mourinho, for instance, had this sort of regression in league terms we’d hear about it a lot more, and that’s perhaps the main point. Guardiola is incredible, not infallible, he’s a perfectionist but not perfect.

And we should be able to point out his mistakes when they happen and comment that he should do better. Listen, City can still have an amazing season, but their Premier League failure is definitely a black mark on Guardiola’s otherwise glittering CV.

Dale Tempest – Lay off Pep

Can you believe that Aguero moment was back in 2012? Doesn’t that make you feel old? One of those iconic moments in sport when you remember exactly where you were when it happened. The young Argentine immediately became a cult hero to the blue half of Manchester scoring his 23rd goal of the season and securing the title.

I mention this because when we discuss and analyse the amazing achievements of this season’s winners we also then look at what went wrong with the other main contender and that of course is Manchester City. Let’s not pretend any of the others are on the same page.

Is Pep at fault for the poor showing? Nine defeats would suggest yes, especially when they include Norwich and Southampton, but I think there are other factors that need to be considered.

When Pep arrived in 2016 his first season saw him finish third behind Chelsea and Tottenham. To say it was a wake-up call was an understatement. After Barcelona and Bayern Munich he understandably thought he just had to turn up and success would follow.

He refocused, spent money and then broke every record going winning the title and hitting the magic 100 points.

To win one title is tough, the second (2018/19) became a challenge of mental resilience very few squads are capable of. So to see Pep’s side hold off Liverpool by a point, remember 25 points to third, was probably his greatest achievement.

It became obvious when City lost at Norwich early in the campaign that the players couldn’t get themselves up for a 38-game battle. So City may have to settle for just three cups but no league title. Yes that is possible with the League Cup in the bag, FA Cup semi on the way and a first leg lead to defend against Real Madrid.

How people can consider this to be a year of Pep failure I just don’t quite get. Pep is a born winner but he also understands you can only expect so much from a squad that have delivered for him over the previous years.

The one issue he is yet to address and I suppose you can criticise him for is that he has yet to come close to finding another Aguero.

OK, Laporte got injured so Fernandinho had to play at the back but who is his next 25-30 goal a season man. Jesus has played 19 times and scored 13 this season but is he the answer? Probably not.

Pep doesn’t play a lot of kids - he wants to win too much. Otherwise how can Phil Foden have played only five Premier League games this year? I’m sure he’ll play more next season as David Silva leaves but that’s a weakness of Pep’s. He doesn’t plan for the future so when his main lieutenants go he has no solid back up plan. Where is the Vincent Kompany’s replacement?

Aguero arrived in 2011/12 and his stats are incredible. 180 goals in 263 appearances. He worked his socks off to stay with Pep and delivered something off the charts. His numbers every year have been exceptional, BUT he’s 32 and injuries are catching up.

Only 18 league games this season after hitting 31, 22, 25, 25, 29, 30, 23, 30 and 34. Strikers rarely last past 30 and Pep simply hasn’t answered that problem because Sergio has just kept on scoring.

If Pep stays and commits to another three years then I’m sure he’ll spend accordingly and challenge Liverpool again but for now let’s not criticise the opposition let’s applaud the winners. They were simply too good but that may not stop City winning three cups. Yes what a rubbish season.

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