OWN GOAL SAVES CITY’S MESSIAH
Guardiola makes winning start but players struggle with the new Pep culture
AT THE end, the Etihad Stadium roared with the kind of enthusiasm you might expect when greeting one of the world’s finest and most iconic coaches. Poor Paddy McNair, brought on to safeguard the score, had just headed into his own goal within four minutes of his debut, and City finally had their breakthrough.
Jesus Navas crossed the ball, Vito Mannone flicked it away from the feet of Kelechi Iheanacho and McNair simply could not react quick enough to avoid nodding home from close range. The clock read 87 minutes and City fans sang with gusto, as though they finally believed a Messianic figure was about to lead them to the promised land. And so it will be recorded that the Pep Guardiola era began with a win
And, after the years of anticipation, it was really Guardiola on the touchline, finally overseeing a Premier League match. There was the familiar expensive, well-cut suit and the distinctive bald head, bobbing up and down as he waved his arms in excitement and exasperation in equal measure. On the pitch, the look was not quite so good. It was a Guardiola team. Full-backs moved into midfield positions and possession stats must have tipped over 75 per cent at times. But this was neither Barcelona nor Bayern.
It was definitely still a Manchester City side with few well-worn Guardiola tropes thrown in. It would be ludicrous to expect even one of the world’s best coaches to transform a team in weeks. City will get better as they continue to be schooled by their mentor.
Sunderland manager David Moyes would have left cursing his luck and that late deflected goal after his new team had done so well to contain City.
There were all manner of Guardiola’s signature tactical touchers; we had full-backs Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna cutting inside the wingers to take up central midfielder positions whenever City were in attack; we had a plethora of small, tricky midfielders filling every position; and we had Willy Caballero in goal because, apparently, he is better on the ball than Joe Hart.
In fact, playing Aleks Kolarov ahead of Eliaquim Mangala at centre-half, Cabellero in goal and leaving Yaya Toure out of the squad completely seemed designed to send a message to the owners along the lines of: get me goalkeeper MarcAndre Ter Stegen, sell Yaya and buy me another centre half. He might come across as smooth, but Guardiola has a way of getting what he wants.
A Patrick van Aanholt free-kick went close early on but City seemed to hit their stride when Raheem Sterling, presumably encouraged by making Guardiola’s first starting line-up — he may find it harder when Leroy Sane is fit — broke down the right in the fourth minute chasing down a forward header from Fernandinho.
He cut inside Van Aanholt who slid in to the forward, upending him and conceding a penalty.
Sergio Aguero stepped up, fired the penalty decisively past Mannone and the Guardiola era appeared to be up and running.
Except that, thereafter it was all a little underwhelming. There was a lovely moment from City’s Nolito when he cut inside his man and fired a shot just over; there was some excellent deliveries from David Silva, playing something akin to a Xavi role and there was a tame strike from Kevin De Bruyne. But there wasn’t much else.
The positional radicalism was distinctive enough and the ball was moved faster than we might have expected under Manuel Pellegrini. But there was also an awful lot of possession for possession’s sake, the endless back and forth along the back four, something Guardiola says he detests.
Incision and energy were missing. Even the trademark pressing of a Guardiola side was nowhere near as systematic as he wants.
Indeed, the best chance for a second goal in the first half came when Lamine Kone managed to loop a header in to the box and Jermain Defoe stuck out a toe from close range in the 41st minute, which Caballero did well to save.
There was more zip about City following the half-time team-talk and the direction of travel was more often forwards, less sideways. A deflection and a Silva blocked shot saw the ball fall to Aguero eight yards out yet he prodded it wide, causing Guardiola to throw his hands in the air in dismay.
But Moyes’s side seemed to have absorbed more of his ideas and John O’Shea, screening the back four, was carrying out admirable work in cutting off City’s supply lines.
De Bruyne threatened with a curling free-kick but still City were frustrated. Moyes then played his own trump card in the 65th minute, introducing Adnan Januzaj, on loan from Manchester United. And the substitute quickly made an impact.
Fabio Borini cut inside in the 71st minute, found Januzaj and with John Stones unsure whether to step out or stay put, Januzaj simply rolled the ball into the path of Defoe, who eased away from Sagna to equalise.
But it was City who were to prevail — thanks to the unfortunate McNair — and provide Guardiola with a winning start to his reign.