ETIHAD STADIUM, MANCHESTER — Manchester City have long been educated in Pep Guardiola’s Catalan school. We’d call it tiki-taka aside from the fact he hates that label.
To round off Saturday’s 3-1 win over Chelsea, the reigning Premier League champions scored a goal as English as fish and chips.
Ederson pumped a long ball towards the halfway line, Kevin De Bruyne won a flick on and centre-forward Erling Haaland laid off a pass for Phil Foden to dart through on goal.
Haaland’s 18th Premier League strike of the season to put City 2-1 up also came from a raking Ederson ball into the right channel, albeit with a helping hand from Robert Sanchez’s rush of blood to the head.
It was the antithesis of Guardiola’s famed “one-hundred-million passes” approach, but the City boss gave a simple explanation.
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“Most of the time in the first half it didn’t happen,” he said when asked about City playing more long balls than are normally expected. “Kova [Mateo Kovacic], Bernardo [Silva] and Gundo [Ilkay Gundogan] were on the ball. Bernardo was unbelievable. In the second half they were more aggressive and made man-to-man.
“When it’s man to man and they jump to the keeper, you can make two-against-one with the keeper [and a defender]. But when it doesn’t happen you have to play with Erling. If you win that ball it’s a chance.
“He had one chance early in the second half, we had the goal and Kevin helped us with the ball and Phil scored the goal.”
Nevertheless, Guardiola was at pains to point out that City dominating possession remains fundamental to all other plans. Unlike in their midweek Champions League defeat at Paris Saint-Germain, Silva, Gundogan and Kovacic were able to control central areas for sustained periods.
Packing that diminutive three into midfield is Guardiola’s latest solution to a season without Ballon d’Or winner Rodri. City have been linked with moves for various holding players during the transfer window, with Juventus’ out-of-favour Brazil international Douglas Luiz the latest suggestion.
If matches become chaotic — as is more likely if the direct ploy to Haaland is used — then the transitions that have been City’s Achilles heel this season can be more numerous. Guardiola concedes his current team is not built to deal with those situations.
“For five to 10 minutes in the second half the game was up-and-down, up-and-down. And with that, we are the worst team. It’s simple, Gundo hasn’t legs to go 40 metres, Bernardo doesn’t have it. We don’t have it,” he added.
“That’s why you have to make the ball with more pausa, maybe it’s less attractive but it works for us and at the right moment punish them.”
There are a plenty of reasons for City to seek midfield reinforcements before the February 3 deadline. Added insurance for their successful Haaland tactic can be added to the list.
