Saga Pep Guardiola asked Jeremy Doku to leave today as his transfer to Arsenal is a done deal ✔️ 👏

Saga Pep Guardiola asked Jeremy Doku to leave today as his transfer to Arsenal is a done deal ✔️ 👏

 

Pep Guardiola is embracing a little chaos at Man City – for now, he has no other

 

The announcement inside the Etihad Stadium that Jeremy Doku had been named man of the match in Manchester City’s draw with Liverpool was greeted in two different ways.

 

For soe, it was an obvious decision. He was a livewire on the left-hand side in the 1-1 draw, as he has been on several occasions this season. This was yet another game when Pep Guardiola’s game plan seemed to be designed around getting the Belgium winger on the ball as often as possible. And when he got it, he often made it count, completing 11 dribbles on Saturday, the most in the Premier League for more than two years.

For others, it was a baffling decision. He had been excellent, as outlined above, but he frequently gave the ball away. In the first half, as Liverpool continued to attack quickly on the break, it was because players like Doku would lose the ball as a result of trying to do something creative.

 

And this is why that difference in opinion is so fascinating. For the people who thought Doku was the best player on the pitch, there will be an element of not even noticing the little innocuous losses of possession and another element of simply not caring: he is a winger and is supposed to make things happen, so losing the ball is fine.

 

That is probably how most people see the game. It is particularly interesting here because it is not really how City — and Guardiola — have always seen things.

 

Not that Guardiola has an issue with Doku. The fact he started against Chelsea before the international break, with Jack Grealish on the substitutes bench, shows Guardiola loves what Doku brings and, even more importantly, trusts him to do it in a game where he generally prefers caution.

 

 

 

Doku could eventually be one of the Premier League’s pin-up boys: he is the type of player who excites fans with individual actions, the type City have not really had in recent years.

 

And so Saturday’s game and, to a certain extent, City’s season is about types of players.

 

City played well against Liverpool and probably deserved to win, so it is not like there is a major need to look for things they were lacking or need to improve on.

 

It is just that during the week, in an article by The Athletic’s John Muller, it was noted that while City are still topping the possession charts this season, they are only a shade above Brighton & Hove Albion and are on course for their lowest possession of the Guardiola era.

 

 

 

Why is this? Is Guardiola embracing a more chaotic approach, putting the ball forward as quickly as possible and hoping for his attacking threats to make the difference in the box? Yes and no.

 

That is how Saturday’s game looked, especially in the first half, and it is not the first time this season City have not been able to get a grip on a match — the 4-4 at Chelsea for starters — but it is not like Guardiola wants this: he has usually had little choice.

 

City named eight subs against Liverpool, including two goalkeepers, the injured John Stones (Guardiola said he was not ready to play), two defenders, Kalvin Phillips and two academy graduates. Not that those players aren’t good enough, but there is no one on the bench that would allow Guardiola to play a more controlled game. Rico Lewis would be, granted, although maybe the 19-year-old’s youth counted against him.

 

Ahead of Rodri, those who started against Liverpool were Bernardo Silva, Julian Alvarez, Phil Foden, Erling Haaland and Doku. What is the result of that? The majority of City’s forwards want to attack at speed, Doku being the most obvious example, so the game looks a certain way. Were it not for Silva tying things together expertly, the first half would have been more chaotic than it was. With Stones and Grealish injured and Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez gone, losing Bernardo would have a massive impact at the moment.

 

That is why it is about types of player and what we want from them. City’s performance was very good, so there is no real need to say they missed this, that or the other, but it is a statement of fact that had Grealish played instead of Doku and Gundogan started instead of Alvarez, the game would have been different.

 

Not necessarily better, but different. More passes, slower attacks, and probably more control over the game. Some people would prefer that and they probably would have named Bernardo man of the match on Saturday, but others are clearly up for a bit more cut and thrust.

 

Guardiola has effectively been trying to exert as much control over matches as possible despite being forced — in most cases — to use players who are better suited to creating chances than keeping possession.

 

His teams have always been about balance — Kevin De Bruyne’s attacking instincts were balanced out by David Silva’s (and later Bernardo’s or Gundogan’s) more controlled approach. None of those players are bad, they are just different.

 

The “issue” comes when that balance is lost: as indisputably good as De Bruyne is, you couldn’t have a team containing three of him — you need somebody to offset what he is good at. And as good as Silva, Gundogan and Grealish are, you need somebody to add a bit more thrust.

 

So City have an imbalance – too many direct, creative forces for how Guardiola wants to play.

 

It is only an issue in inverted commas because they are still a wonderful team. Guardiola is adaptable enough and the players are good enough to make it work for the most part. It is why the only noticeable signs of their largely enforced direct approach are that they are not miles clear at the top and that they are not dominating possession as they normally do.

 

Once the injured players come back and they can dial back the directness a little, they will look more like the City of old. Maybe they can truly harness Doku’s direct threat, as they did with Erling Haaland last season, by slowing everything else down and making the team more stable.

 

But maybe they are a bit more exciting to watch at the moment and if that is what you want from football, you’re probably not complaining.

 

(Top photo: Martin Rickett/PA Images via Getty Images)

 

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Sam Lee is the Manchester City correspondent for The Athletic. The 2020-21 campaign will be his sixth following the club, having previously held other positions with Goal and the BBC, and freelancing in South America. Follow Sam on Twitter @SamLee

 

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Liverpool’s No 6 Pursuit
Pep Guardiola is embracing a little chaos at Man City – for now, he has no other option
JEREMY-DOKU-PEP-GUARDIOLA-

Sam Lee
By Sam Lee
Nov 26, 2023
The announcement inside the Etihad Stadium that Jeremy Doku had been named man of the match in Manchester City’s draw with Liverpool was greeted in two different ways.

For some, it was an obvious decision. He was a livewire on the left-hand side in the 1-1 draw, as he has been on several occasions this season. This was yet another game when Pep Guardiola’s game plan seemed to be designed around getting the Belgium winger on the ball as often as possible. And when he got it, he often made it count, completing 11 dribbles on Saturday, the most in the Premier League for more than two years.

 

For others, it was a baffling decision. He had been excellent, as outlined above, but he frequently gave the ball away. In the first half, as Liverpool continued to attack quickly on the break, it was because players like Doku would lose the ball as a result of trying to do something creative.

And this is why that difference in opinion is so fascinating. For the people who thought Doku was the best player on the pitch, there will be an element of not even noticing the little innocuous losses of possession and another element of simply not caring: he is a winger and is supposed to make things happen, so losing the ball is fine.

That is probably how most people see the game. It is particularly interesting here because it is not really how City — and Guardiola — have always seen things.

Not that Guardiola has an issue with Doku. The fact he started against Chelsea before the international break, with Jack Grealish on the substitutes bench, shows Guardiola loves what Doku brings and, even more importantly, trusts him to do it in a game where he generally prefers caution.

 

Doku could eventually be one of the Premier League’s pin-up boys: he is the type of player who excites fans with individual actions, the type City have not really had in recent years.

And so Saturday’s game and, to a certain extent, City’s season is about types of players.

City played well against Liverpool and probably deserved to win, so it is not like there is a major need to look for things they were lacking or need to improve on.

It is just that during the week, in an article by The Athletic’s John Muller, it was noted that while City are still topping the possession charts this season, they are only a shade above Brighton & Hove Albion and are on course for their lowest possession of the Guardiola era.

 

Why is this? Is Guardiola embracing a more chaotic approach, putting the ball forward as quickly as possible and hoping for his attacking threats to make the difference in the box? Yes and no.

That is how Saturday’s game looked, especially in the first half, and it is not the first time this season City have not been able to get a grip on a match — the 4-4 at Chelsea for starters — but it is not like Guardiola wants this: he has usually had little choice.

City named eight subs against Liverpool, including two goalkeepers, the injured John Stones (Guardiola said he was not ready to play), two defenders, Kalvin Phillips and two academy graduates. Not that those players aren’t good enough, but there is no one on the bench that would allow Guardiola to play a more controlled game. Rico Lewis would be, granted, although maybe the 19-year-old’s youth counted against him.

Ahead of Rodri, those who started against Liverpool were Bernardo Silva, Julian Alvarez, Phil Foden, Erling Haaland and Doku. What is the result of that? The majority of City’s forwards want to attack at speed, Doku being the most obvious example, so the game looks a certain way. Were it not for Silva tying things together expertly, the first half would have been more chaotic than it was. With Stones and Grealish injured and Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez gone, losing Bernardo would have a massive impact at the moment.

That is why it is about types of player and what we want from them. City’s performance was very good, so there is no real need to say they missed this, that or the other, but it is a statement of fact that had Grealish played instead of Doku and Gundogan started instead of Alvarez, the game would have been different.

Not necessarily better, but different. More passes, slower attacks, and probably more control over the game. Some people would prefer that and they probably would have named Bernardo man of the match on Saturday, but others are clearly up for a bit more cut and thrust.

Guardiola has effectively been trying to exert as much control over matches as possible despite being forced — in most cases — to use players who are better suited to creating chances than keeping possession.

His teams have always been about balance — Kevin De Bruyne’s attacking instincts were balanced out by David Silva’s (and later Bernardo’s or Gundogan’s) more controlled approach. None of those players are bad, they are just different.

The “issue” comes when that balance is lost: as indisputably good as De Bruyne is, you couldn’t have a team containing three of him — you need somebody to offset what he is good at. And as good as Silva, Gundogan and Grealish are, you need somebody to add a bit more thrust.

So City have an imbalance – too many direct, creative forces for how Guardiola wants to play.

It is only an issue in inverted commas because they are still a wonderful team. Guardiola is adaptable enough and the players are good enough to make it work for the most part. It is why the only noticeable signs of their largely enforced direct approach are that they are not miles clear at the top and that they are not dominating possession as they normally do.

Once the injured players come back and they can dial back the directness a little, they will look more like the City of old. Maybe they can truly harness Doku’s direct threat, as they did with Erling Haaland last season, by slowing everything else down and making the team more stable.

But maybe they are a bit more exciting to watch at the moment and if that is what you want from football, you’re probably not complaining.

(Top photo: Martin Rickett/PA Images via Getty Images)

Get all-access to exclusive stories.

Subscribe to The Athletic for in-depth coverage of your favorite players, teams, leagues and clubs. Try a week on us.

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Sam Lee is the Manchester City correspondent for The Athletic. The 2020-21 campaign will be his sixth following the club, having previously held other positions with Goal and the BBC, and freelancing in South America. Follow Sam on Twitter @SamLee

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