Football Musings

Pep Guardiola called it a ‘pity’ when he discovered the full extent of Kevin De Bruyne’s injury, and if there were any lingering doubts as to the importance of the Belgian midfielder to Manchester City, their failure to win the two games played in his absence shows how crucial he has become during Guardiola’s nascent reign at the club. Guardiola may have improved the diet at City and in turn improve the quality of football, taken away Wi-Fi to ensure players talk to themselves more, but he is yet to find a solution to an old problem at his new club: how do City cope without De Bruyne?

City’s collapse last season in the title race coincided with De Bruyne’s absence after picking up an injury in the Capital One Cup semifinal victory over Everton in February, with Manuel Pellegrini overseeing four defeats and two wins in the seven league matches played. While City are better equipped to mitigate for player absences this term than in previous years, De Bruyne has so far proved to be as close to irreplaceable as any player can be for the club; there’s a reason Guardiola claimed he is one of the best players he has worked with.

In their 2-0 loss at the hands of Tottenham last time out, Guardiola elected to start Fernando in central midfield with Fernandinho playing slightly higher ahead of him, and it was a total disaster. With Spurs pressing at a frenetic pace and thus blocking the passing lanes, Fernando was uncomfortable receiving the ball under pressure and as a result City ceded possession in vital areas, leaving Sergio Aguero isolated upfront. David Silva showed flashes of brilliance from his position in central midfield but was often overwhelmed, and despite Guardiola insisting De Bruyne would not necessarily have made much of a difference, City have been imperious with both players influencing play from the centre of the park. That Guardiola sent him to the Quiron Clinic in Barcelona to see a specialist alongside captain Vincent Kompany is testament to how vital he is to his manager, and optimistic reports suggest he could be back for next midweek’s Champions League clash at the Camp Nou.

De Bruyne has chipped in with two goals and four assists in six Premier League games, leads the team in key passes (3.3 better than Silva’s 2.6), more crosses (2.2) and accurate through-balls (0.7) per game. It’s interesting how he has become a much more effective player under Guardiola despite moving backwards to play as part of a midfield three in contrast to last season when he played primarily on the flanks and in the hole behind the striker. The player himself admitted he was still coming to terms with his new manager’s instructions after the Sunderland game on the opening weekend of the season.

“It’s a different role,” De Bruyne told the Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws. “It’s all right. It’s a little change but it’s all right. The coach has his own tactics. I play not as a No10 but as a free eight with a lot of movement everywhere.”

There was so much confusion within the City team on that opening day that De Bruyne said the players “did not know where to run” and it was evident as he, Raheem Sterling and Aguero had roughly the same average position. The freedom afforded to him, coupled with his intelligence and ability to pick a pass means De Bruyne has grown into his role to perhaps become the most vital cog in City’s increasingly well-oiled machine. It is therefore not surprising that Guardiola’s side have sorely missed a player who has become the central hub of their attacking ambitions, and with a stern test to come against Everton this weekend, the big question is how the Spanish manager rejigs his options on Saturday. The most likely scenario will see Ilkay Gundogan return in place of the hapless Fernando, with the midfielder’s ability to control and dictate play crucial to how City want to play. Gundogan should also dovetail seamlessly with Silva to alleviate the Spaniard’s creative burden.

City enjoy a fantastic record against Everton; they are unbeaten in their last six games – four wins and two draws – and have conceded only once in the past four meetings between both sides. It has been a completely one-sided affair, but Ronald Koeman’s quietly but vastly improved Everton side are capable of posing awkward questions for a team searching for ways to make to without their influential midfielder.

Celtic and Spurs have shown that relentlessly pressing City and piling pressure on their players who are least comfortable with the ball at their feet provides an effective manner of shutting them down, and while it is inconceivable that Everton will apply themselves and follow that template closely, it will be interesting to see how Koeman instructs his central midfielders and indeed the entire team to close down City’s passing lanes right from the start.

This game marks a reunion between Koeman and Guardiola, two men who are products of the great Barcelona coaching seminar of the 90’s and who model their styles on the late Johan Cruyff’s belief in a methodical, possession-based approach. Koeman took Guardiola under his wing following his promotion to the senior team and both men still enjoy a cordial relationship to this day.

With both sides in need of a win after a run of two winless games each ahead of a tough run of fixtures, Saturday’s encounter promises to be a fascinating tactical battle between managers who are steeped in their ways and learned their trade from the same master. Does Koeman encourage his side press, and harry and hassle City as Spurs and Celtic did, and how does Guardiola, ever the innovative tactician change his side to cope with the absence of perhaps the Premier League’s most decisive midfielder? It’s a game to keep an eye on.