Fatigued or not, Pep Guardiola’s superstars prove they are class above
Manchester City's Raheem Sterling celebrates scoring their side's fourth goal of the game
Pep Guardiola may want to see fixtures eased for his over-worked Premier League stars and even went so far as to suggest they consider strike action last week.
But, if this was a sign of what Premier League football can look like when two “exhausted” teams — and one without nine injured first team players — go head to head, then few, apart from the most die-hard Leicester fans could have any complaints.
This was the first-ever Premier League St Stephen’s Day fixture to produce nine goals, the highest scoring top-flight tie since Manchester United won at Oldham by the same scoreline 30 years ago.
And, perhaps, even those visiting Leicester supporters will have enjoyed their festive visit to the Etihad given the way in which their side launched an improbable, but brilliant, second half comeback.
It fell short — as so many teams do against City, of course — but perhaps Guardiola’s players had taken their manager a little too literally and started their industrial action early, given the way they leaked three goals in 10 minutes either side of the hour mark.
Ultimately, as they so often do, City had more than enough to score two more goals and preserve a win that had looked a formality when they raced into a 4-0 lead with just 25 minutes on the clock.
That was City at their glorious, unplayable best, looking likely to score every time they crossed the halfway line, full of confidence, invention and skill.
But, perhaps Guardiola had a point and fatigue did begin to tell after the break or, rather, it might have been another simple human trait — complacency.
Either way, Guardiola had spoken much sense in recent days, making an impassioned plea for supporters to wear masks at games in the build-up to Leicester’s visit to avoid the league being forced behind closed doors in the new year, for example.
A quick look around the Etihad showed that his call had been almost universally ignored by fans although perhaps his players took his words a little more literally when it came to Guardiola’s complaints about the stresses and strains being placed upon them by the current season.
In his defence, Guardiola has always been a fan of the tradition of holiday fixtures taking place on St Stephen’s Day and New Year’s Day but has a larger issue with a fixture being planted in between.
More, the City manager has concerns about the demands of the international and European calendars, which eat into players’ summer schedules in a seemingly never-ending quest to force more fixtures and competitions into the year. Yet, for all those valid observations, Guardiola can often be an enigma when it comes to his team selections and use of substitutes.
The City manager has consistently called for the Premier League to adopt a five-substitute rule, introduced for Project Restart in the wake of the first national lockdown in England, but only made one in this game; Phil Foden coming on for the final 19 minutes.
There were also some strange decisions in his initial team selection. Foden and £100m Jack Grealish were again left on the bench, presumably as punishment for their recent off-field behaviour which saw Guardiola critical of the pair after he left them out of the win at Newcastle. That duo, plus Nathan Ake, Gabriel Jesus and, possibly, Kyle Walker or John Stones, could all have been used here against a Leicester side that had nine first team players out through injury.
Ultimately, City had more than enough to hold on for a memorable end to football at the Etihad in 2021 as City took their goal tally to 17 in their last three league games. Whether they are fatigued or not, Manchester City are a team you cannot afford to take your eye off in 2022.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
