Pep Guardiola may have seen this coming – his players didn’t. While Manchester City‘s manager has been critical of the defending Premier League champions’ start to the season, it is not a view universally shared by his squad and that will be his greatest cause for concern.
Guardiola was so incensed by the performance in Saturday’s routine 3-0 win against Fulham that he ordered his players to sit through videos of their mistakes the following day.
It’s not taken City’s stars long to get used to the Catalan’s ultra-demanding ways or his attention to detail. But the idea that a resounding home win, making it 13 points from a possible 15 at the start of their title defence, was evidence of some sort of malaise is a tough sell. Man City cannot blame Lyon loss on Guardiola ban, insists Arteta
Yet, brooding in the executive seats as his team capitulated against Lyon on Wednesday night, Guardiola’s fears were realised.
He is fiercely defensive of his players in public and reverse psychology is not one of his tactical tools – just ask Sergio Aguero. His criticisms are constructive and, when publicised, done so with purpose. When he revealed he was angry after Fulham, it was because he genuinely was.
Having been pushed to the brink by City’s wastefulness in his first season in charge – missed chances no longer consume him after building a team that could still score 143 goals in all competitions last season.