Jesus: we must work hard and get back on top
The equation has changed for Manchester City. For weeks, many operated under the assumption that the champions would not just retain their title but win the Premier League by a sizeable margin.
If they did not include City themselves, and Pep Guardiola always laughed off talk of becoming ‘Invincibles’, the sight of a table topped by Liverpool should alter perceptions.
City have only dropped seven points in 16 games. They now trail Liverpool. “It changes the fact that we aren’t top anymore,” said strker Gabriel Jesus. “We need to work hard to get the top of the table back.”
Defeat at Chelsea last Saturday reduced the margin for error, as the Brazilian forward accepted. “The games at home, even if we know they are going to be difficult, we need to try to win them all. The away games as well. And in a few weeks, we have the clash against Liverpool.”
If the season is shaping up as a contest between Manchester and Merseyside, so is this weekend: Liverpool host United on Sunday while City take on Everton on Saturday.
City’s problems stretch beyond the nature of the opposition. Sergio Aguero, David Silva, Kevin de Bruyne, Fernandinho and Benjamin Mendy missed Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Hoffenheim in the Uefa Champions League, depriving them of half of their strongest side.
Aguero and Fernandinho may be the likeliest to return, with De Bruyne a possible substitute.
City have made winning home league games appear simple: eight victories have produced 30 goals. Perhaps that run has been eased by the fixture list.
If City, who have already visited the rest of the top five, have been praised for their exploits on the road, a knock-on effect is that they have had some of the simpler home games.
As Jesus suggested, that may change: Everton and Crystal Palace arrive at the Etihad Stadium in December, followed by Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers in January, Arsenal, Chelsea and West Ham United in February and then Tottenham and Leicester City in the last month of the season.
Meanwhile, the concern over the Brazilian’s own form continues. He struck a post against Hoffenheim, but a forward with a solitary league goal this season and who has failed to find the net in 11 of his last 12 games has not capitalised on Aguero’s absence. “I have to score goals,” he said.