PEP WINNING MIND GAMES
City have psychological grip on the title
WE have known for a long time that Manchester City are an exceptional team. Now we also know that Pep Guardiola’s side have the Premier League in a psychological grip from which there may be no escape.
Despite the scoreline that saw City win by a single goal, this was barely a football match. It was not a contest. Newcastle simply did not engage, hardly emerged from their own half all game.
From Rafa Benitez, one of the league’s cleverest and most gilded managers, there was no attempt to face City anywhere other than on the edge of his own team’s penalty area. In short, this was not a game that Newcastle — the home team — ever thought they could win.
City did win thanks to yet another goal from Raheem Sterling. The England forward volleyed in a very good chipped pass from Kevin De Bruyne in 31 minutes. Guardiola’s team should have scored more but didn’t. De Bruyne struck the post in the second half and also missed another very good chance.
But if that makes this sound like a game that could have gone either way, it wasn’t and that shows the extent to which City have mesmerised not only the watching public but also the opposition.
As such, if City’s rivals are waiting for the defeats that may yet turn this title contest into anything other than a procession, then they may be waiting a very long time. City are now 15 points clear at the top. Even by their own standards, City’s domination of the first half was remarkable. In fact, it was almost absolute.
Whenever Newcastle did venture forward, there was a full-throated roar from the crowd. Among the fans at least there was an appetite for adventure but Benitez’s tactics ensured the Gallowgate were on starvation rations.
It is hard to be critical of anything Benitez does. Were it not for the Spaniard, a team who have hardly changed from the moment he led them out of the Championship would already be destined for a return. It is thanks to Benitez that Newcastle have any chance of survival at all.
Here, though, there was little that was sophisticated about his approach. His formation saw five defenders line up across the back as they settled in for a long night.
For City, that served as sufficient encouragement to plot a steady course towards goal. The league leaders lost Vincent Kompany to injury early on but that didn’t disrupt normal service. Sergio Aguero should have scored when left-back Danilo found him with a lovely pass in the seventh minute and from that point on City were in the ascendency.
Newcastle goalkeeper Rob Elliot diverted a Gabriel Jesus header over the bar and De Bruyne had two shots from distance that were only fractionally too high.
On the half-hour mark, Aguero and Jesus had a go but there was an inevitability about what was coming next, though. De Bruyne’s chipped pass was skilful in its execution and Sterling’s side-foot finish on the volley was equally deft. Newcastle’s marking was not the best and Elliot may have done a little better as he was beaten at his near post through a gap he may feel he should have had covered.
Newcastle roused themselves with DeAndre Yedlin finding Rolando Aarons when Kyle Walker slipped. But Aarons’ neat chip was headed off the line by Nicolas Otamendi.
The only question was whether City would manage to score the second goal and they should have with Ilkay Gundogan and De Bruyne, who hit the post, culpable. Not that it mattered.
Guardiola said: ‘We did absolutely everything but it is difficult to play when the other team doesn’t want to play.
‘We created enough chances to win 2-0, 3-0, 4-0. But we are now 15 points in front and we can now focus on our next game.’