OH, I CHE!
Adams scores from 45 yards as Saints stun City
THEY were the pigeon on Thursday and the statue on Sunday. And this really isn’t a great time to be a statue, is it?
So we find ourselves once more wondering about this peculiar Manchester City team, which in three days went from dropping filth over the best side in the world to losing at the club with the worst home record in the division.
Funny times, indeed. But they’ll fly again before long. We know that. We also know they have one trophy in the bank this season, another in close proximity in the FA Cup, and then the resumption of the Champions League and that old quest. Really, this campaign in the cold of Liverpool’s shadow has not been so trying as it might be tempting to think.
But it is hard to get comfortable with this group of players, because you never fully know when they throw in one like this. The wider performance wasn’t so much the problem — they battered Southampton. Pulled them left and right, drove them to their lines.
Consider the statistics, such as they were: City had 26 shots to Southampton’s eight and 74 per cent of the possession.
Behind those numbers hide the gremlins, as ever, because City always look exceptional on paper. The numbers hide a defence that too often lets down its attack, as it did with Southampton’s marvellous winner here, scored by Che Adams of all people.
This was his 30th game in pursuit of a goal and his strike from 45 yards or more was just lovely. It was also because of Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Then there’s Gabriel Jesus. His deficiencies in front of goal are often exaggerated — he has 18 goals from 25 starts this season. But he is nothing close to the finisher that Sergio Aguero is. He had four chances here, two of them excellent, and none required a good save.
Roy Keane pointed out earlier in the week that Jesus is not the answer to Pep Guardiola’s search for a striker for when Aguero finally goes, and this was one of those games when that truth was clear as day.
They are areas that need to be addressed, even this was hardly the occasion to call for great action. Even in defeat. Because, really, a game completed with limited damage is a success at this point in City’s dance.
With a further two games in the coming five days, and six in 20 before they can resume their business with the Champions League, Guardiola has to find a way to keep the boat in one piece.
‘We play more than good but it is not enough to win the games,’ said the City boss. ‘We cannot say we are not a team who score goals.
‘We are leading in goals. We create a lot of chances. We are a team who concede less, but we lost a lot of games.
‘It’s difficult even for me to find a reason why but you have to insist and talk about the game, the way they play and try to be more, concede as less as possible and, up front, score.’
Guardiola (right) made six changes to the side that battered Liverpool. In came David Silva, Bernardo Silva, Joao Cancelo, Zinchenko, Riyad Mahrez and Fernandinho, who returned from suspension and into his regular stationing in the midfield. Kevin de Bruyne and Phil Foden were among those dropping to the bench and full-backs Kyle Walker and Benjamin Mendy were left out with fitness issues.
A top attack. But the worry is usually that the defence will creak, and it did. Indeed, up until the water break, including Adams’ goal, City’s defence allowed a Southampton attack of moderate force to land multiple punches, mostly because of individual errors. The first saw Aymeric Laporte hit air with an attempted volley, which allowed Adams a clean enough sight of goal. He went for power, but dragged the shot wide. The next error was worse and it was punished magnificently. Laporte had played into Zinchenko and his attempt to drop a shoulder and roll Stuart Armstrong went horribly wrong. The tackle pushed the ball loose to Adams and from 45 yards, maybe more, he lobbed Ederson. It was lovely by Adams, a first goal in 30 games.
‘It means a lot to Che and also to us,’ said Saints manager Ralph Hasenhuttl afterwards. ‘He worked hard like all the other guys today, otherwise it would not have been possible to get anything.’
Danny Ings had a chance for 2-0 shortly before the break. Laporte had let the striker go — in hope of offside, if we are being kind to the defender — and Kyle WalkerPeters found him with a floater over the top. Ings slid in but got too much height on the volley.
The frustration for City, beyond the obvious, is they had chances. Jesus contributed to the argument around his effectiveness by failing to turn in a delight of a cross from Joao Cancelo, and there were also a pair of misses for Raheem Sterling — the first bringing a good save from Alex McCarthy — as well as a shot against a post for Fernandinho.
David Silva brought a second stop of some quality from McCarthy, as did Mahrez, shortly after Sterling had curled another chance wide.
The start of the second half brought a similar burst. Jesus twice glanced headers wide and Mahrez had a shout for a penalty before David Silva went clear and was blocked by McCarthy.
At 58 minutes, Guardiola changed gears. He replaced his wide men by bringing on de Bruyne and Foden for Mahrez and Sterling — a complement to the Southampton full-backs of Ryan Bertrand and Walker-Peters — but still no amount of knocking opened the door.
SOUTHAMPTON (4-4-2): McCarthy; WalkerPeters, Stephens, Bednarek, Bertrand; Armstrong (Smallbone 90), Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Redmond; Adams (Long 70), Ings. Subs not used: Gunn, Djenepo, Obafemi, Smallbone, Vokins, anso, Ferry, Jankewitz. Booked: Romeu.
MANCHESTER CITY (4-3-3): Ederson; Cancelo, E Garcia, Laporte, Zinchenko; Fernandinho, D Silva, Bernardo; Mahrez (De Bruyne 58), Jesus, Sterling (Foden 58). Subs not used: Bravo, Stones, Gundogan, Rodrigo, Otamendi, Doyle, Harwood-Bellis. Booked: Jesus, Fernandinho. Man of the match: Che Adams. Referee: Andre Marriner.