Leadership and Reflection: A Crucial Turning Point for Manchester City
Manchester City’s four captains spent 10 days reflecting on a second defeat of the season, which came at the hands of Brighton. This loss echoed many of the frustrating afternoons they experienced last season. During this time, Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias were on international duty in Armenia, while Erling Haaland took his frustrations out on poor Moldova, scoring five goals in Oslo. Rodri also made a couple of substitute appearances for Spain.
Despite being spread across Europe, the performance at Brighton remained fresh in their minds. Giving up a lead and losing 2-1 in the final minutes felt eerily familiar, reminiscent of last year’s struggles. The quartet decided to gather together as soon as they returned, recognizing the need for urgent action before facing Manchester United in what was described as a must-not-lose derby.
This leadership meeting was a decisive call to come together early in the season. Perhaps that is why Pep Guardiola overruled his usual tradition of letting the squad and staff vote for the captains, instead selecting them himself.
Unusual Week at City HQ
The days following the meeting unfolded in an unusual manner. For the first time under Guardiola, Manchester City trained on the Etihad Stadium pitch. They experimented with different formations, including a diamond, during one session. Guardiola’s discussions with backroom staff ran so long that he ended up exceptionally late for other commitments. It was not a normal week at City HQ.
Resetting the Season
Beating United 3-0 helped reset the season somewhat. The presentation Guardiola received from his captains played a significant role in the change of momentum. The message was clear: “Pep, we don’t want to live this season like we lived last season.”
Guardiola spent Thursday afternoon watching last season’s 2-1 reverse at Villa Park. This match severely flattered his team, with Phil Foden’s last-minute consolation greeted by ironic chanting from the away end. Guardiola noted poor body language, not enough duels won, and too much complaining.
“We were empty,” he said before heading back there on Sunday. “Drained. In that moment we were in a mess. We didn’t have energy, we didn’t deserve anything. The players had no energy. (Normally) we’ll play three, four or five new players because they have energy and want to play, but last season that could not happen. Some of them who won four Premier Leagues in a row (thought), ‘OK, what’s next?’ and didn’t have it.”
A New Era?
A first return to Aston Villa – a team that, before the shock Europa League defeat at Go Ahead Eagles, had won their last five in all competitions – should represent a decent yardstick of how far City have actually progressed.
There is definitely caution around, with Silva stating in the week that they have been “quite good for a month.” Guardiola agreed with the idea that a proper 90-minute display has yet to arrive. The players, led by Silva but with able deputies, are calling for more consistency. Haaland’s voice is becoming increasingly louder behind closed doors, which should be good news for the manager.
It is nine unbeaten; 10 would match their longest run since last October, when their world fell in. It is because of that spell of almost three months, nine defeats in 12, that many experts have City as outsiders for the title.
Motivation and Ambition
“It motivates you,” Josko Gvardiol said. “When you see that no one talks about you and they’re all talking about Arsenal and Liverpool, it is normal. They are good teams. We will see. I would say at the beginning of the season you could feel it, it was just about Liverpool and Arsenal. After the run we’ve had, everyone is getting aware again that we are still here.”
Guardiola is not committing either way on that at the moment and is probably right to keep his powder dry on the top. But he believes the way in which they battled back towards the end of last season served as a decent foundation for this, maybe offering a reason why they didn’t spiral after those two defeats.
“The players came back,” he added. “If we’d given up then we would have finished 10th. In this league? Finish 10th. We finished third and not much away from Arsenal, who were really good. Now we are a team that can win and can lose but we are a team who can do good things.”
