STRONG AND STABLE
Swashbuckling City have turned into the so solid crew
THERE was a time, not all that long ago, when a 1-0 Manchester City win at Southampton sparked wild, lastminute celebrations for Pep Guardiola and his team.
Gabriel Jesus’s late winner meant the champions finished with 100 points, left Guardiola and his staff hugging each other in delight and City’s subs sprinting down the touchline to join the pile-on in front of the away fans.
Remember that City side? Freescoring, record-breaking, runaway title winners who regularly had their opponents beaten before games had even kicked off.
The victory they earned to complete their 2017-18 campaign was fitting reward for their sensational season and swashbuckling style. How times have changed, in so many ways.
on Saturday, it was simple but vital defending, such as Ruben Dias booting the ball into the stands or surviving when Southampton put them under the cosh, that was celebrated at St Mary’s by John Stones and Co. And it might be like that for the foreseeable. The free- flowing City of old have, for the time being at least, been replaced by a badly misfiring one.
Good job, then, that the boys at the back are doing their bit and can be relied on to provide the platform to keep City in contention. This shutout was their seventh in eight games.
Stones has played in five of them — he missed the one match in which they did concede — and excelled at Southampton alongside summer signing Dias, who has featured in seven of the eight games. The versatile Joao Cancelo has been prominent, too, while Kyle Walker remains key.
‘The back four were brilliant. It’s incredible,’ Guardiola said. ‘That’s the way we can still be there, knocking on the door of the teams above us. Work hard, be solid, stable and one day maybe we’ll be fresh to score goals.’ Sergio
Aguero’s injury and illness issues have been compounded by Jesus — whom Guardiola insists is still the Argentine’s long- term successor — hitting a dry spell.
Aguero was an unused sub at St Mary’s, Jesus out injured and winger Ferran Torres pressed into stand-in striker duties again.
A new frontman will not be riding to City’s rescue in January, according to Guardiola.
‘No, I don’t think so, the financial situation is what it is,’ he said. ‘All clubs are struggling and we’re no exception.’
So Guardiola is prepared to wait until this goal- shy phase passes, knowing it could be fatal to City’s hopes of snatching the title back from Liverpool.
At half-time, one of Southampton’s major concerns was stopping the supply line to Kevin De Bruyne, who kept finding little pockets of space between their midfield and defence.
They were unsuccessful, but needn’t have worried.
Riyad Mahrez — recipient of one of those animated, in-your-face Guardiola pep talks before he came on and presumably not told to blaze a sitter over — and Bernardo Silva missed simple chances the Belgian helped create. They were far from the only culprits.
A few hours after Liverpool had
put seven past Crystal Palace, City had just Raheem Sterling’s first-half effort to show for all De Bruyne’s work — leading to a torturous finale and muted, relieved full-time celebrations for Guardiola this time.
He added: ‘When we created chances, we couldn’t score. When that happens you’re always going to suffer. that’s why I’m not able to say how our season will be.’ SOUTHAMPTON (4-4-2): McCarthy 7; Walker-Peters 7, Bednarek 6.5, Vestergaard 8, Bertrand 7; Walcott 8, Ward-Prowse 6.5, Romeu 7, Djenepo 5.5 (Redmond 58min, 6); Adams 6.5 (N’Lundulu 81), Ings 6.5 (Tella 42, 6.5). Subs not used: Forster, Stephens, Long, Armstrong, Salisu, Diallo. Booked: Romeu, Ward-Prowse. Manager: Ralph Hasenhuttl 7. MANCHESTER CITY (4-2-3-1): Ederson 6.5; Walker 7, Dias 8, STONES 9, Cancelo 7; Rodri 6.5, Gundogan 7; Silva 6.5, De Bruyne 8.5, Sterling 7; Torres 6 (Mahrez 72, 6). Subs not used: Carson, Ake, Aguero, Zinchenko, Mendy, Fernandinho, Foden, Nmecha. Scorer: Sterling 16. Booked: De Bruyne, Ederson. Manager: Pep Guardiola 7.5. Referee: Mike Dean 7.