Pep Guardiola puts the paint brushes away as he used two holding midfielders in Tottenham defeat
- Pep Guardiola seemed to put the handbrake on with his starting XI against Spurs
- It has to be linked to when City found themselves 3-0 down to Liverpool last year
- City were dumped out of the Champions League by the Reds over two legs
- Guardiola instead went with two holding midfielders instead of two artists
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola seemed to put the handbrake on a little with the starting line-up he selected and the system he deployed.
I think that has to be linked to their Champions League quarter-final first-leg loss last season, when they found themselves 3-0 down to Liverpool at half time. That was what killed their dream of winning Europe’s elite competition in 2017-18.
On Tuesday night, Guardiola used two holding midfielders in Ilkay Gundogan and Fernandinho, whereas normally he uses one and has two artists on either side. His starting line-up showed how he decided to put his paint brushes away.
Pep Guardiola seemed to put the handbrake on with his starting XI against Tottenham
Kevin de Bruyne was dropped to the substitutes’ bench, while Bernardo Silva was not risked due to injury. Only David Silva was out there.
Once the ball got to the final third, City were still dangerous, because Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero were there.
But this was one of the first times we’ve seen Guardiola adopt a more defensive strategy for a big match, and I feel it was linked to that loss at Anfield.
t has to be linked to when City found themselves 3-0 down to Liverpool at half time in Europe
City were dumped out of the Champions League by the Reds over two legs last season
For Son Heung-min’s goal, Fabian Delph was beaten by a ball played on the inside of him, then he stops to appeal for the ball going out of play.
The left back lost focus and it proved costly for City.
The bottom line, when it comes to UEFA’s rules on VAR, is that if you make your body bigger, then a penalty will be given.
Guardiola instead went with two holding midfielders instead of two artists on Tuesday night
That’s what the governing body have told us all along, so that’s why it was technically right a penalty was given against Danny Rose.
I don’t necessarily agree with it, but I understand it. Whether we like it or not, we have to accept it.
It was right that referee Bjorn Kuipers studied the incident on his pitch-side monitor, too, to make him part of the process.