The recent travails of Manchester City have seeped into the wider public consciousness to such a degree that they went political primetime a couple of Fridays back.
Football doesn’t often wing its way onto Have I Got News For You and yet, as the panel discussed how a high percentage of Manchester residents weren’t working, Paul Merton piped up to suggest that number was swelled by Pep Guardiola’s squad. With a big old smirk.
Merton’s apparently a Tottenham supporter. A knowing laugh around the studio followed. Either a knowledgeable crowd or the slump has prompted significant interest among casuals. Almost certainly the latter.
For however long this lasts – and we’re now at seven defeats in 10 – the fall of those who have lorded it for so long will always offer fascination, from a human interest perspective more than anything else.
Fascination that Guardiola clearly doesn’t care for as he bristles his way through this rocky patch, which limps on towards Sunday’s derby with Manchester United. It’s one hell of a demise and while injuries offer some mitigation, City at anywhere near their norm grind out wins regardless.
They will leave Italy on Thursday morning having gifted another result away and find themselves sat in 22nd of a 36-team Champions League with no reasonable hope of reaching the top eight. So it’s another two matches in February, providing they even make the play-off round. That’s nowhere near certain either.
Weston McKennie pulled off a superb strike to snatch a home win away from Manchester City
The visitors have now lost seven of their last 10 matches as limp form crossed into Europe
Pep Guardiola’s players did not perform particularly badly nor disobey orders but were downed with little effort in Turin
The worst aspect about this was that City hadn’t even performed particularly poorly and carried out Guardiola’s instructions. Still, it ended with heads bowed, frowns at each other. They look a beaten group at the moment and changing that attitude appears very difficult indeed. ‘I love the way we played,’ Guardiola said. ‘The result is not going to convince me of the opposite.’
In telling his team to go back to basics, to play a ‘simple’ game, Guardiola unleashed his inner James Carville this week. It’s the passes, stupid. City have not been nearly economical enough with the ball in recent weeks, not recycling with the patience for which they are renowned.
The message had been heeded, with City playing square balls, often without much risk, to draw Juventus out. The Old Lady largely stayed exactly where she was, thank you very much. She’d later pick two massive moments, via Dusan Vlahovic and Weston McKennie, just like everybody else appears to.
Rushed is effectively what Guardiola had labelled his team – in stark contrast to a usually forensic working over of opposition. That, more than anything else, is an indictment of where this current squad are at. This wasn’t hectic, seeming more methodical. Well, methodical until it wasn’t.
They did control it for large spells – and bizarrely, after this defeat, that does feel like something of a step forward – but defensive frailties are costing them dear. Guardiola has spoken about punishing themselves and he is absolutely right. These are no longer ambushes. You cannot self-ambush. ‘It feels like every attack we concede is so dangerous,’ Ilkay Gundogan said.
Only sixth in Serie A, Juventus are below par under Thiago Motta and the intrigue surrounding their patchy form has been a similar topic of debate here to City’s back home. Motta wants to control games in a way the guy stood to his right always has, although this was perhaps not the night for that.
They sat and waited for opportunities to nick possession high up the pitch. City, in this current guise, will give you that and indecision by Rico Lewis in the left-back area offered a glimmer for Francisco Conceicao. One of Ederson’s botched clearances provoked brief panic.
‘Everybody is involved to change a little bit of the dynamics, that is all,’ Guardiola said to explain why the Brazilian was in from the cold after three matches on the bench. Given the persistent injuries, it’s the only real position where Guardiola can influence meaningful change, having given Stefan Ortega a run to see if that altered their fortunes.
Under Thiago Motta, Juventus have become draw specialists, and saw out a cagey first-hald
The hosts punished their English guests for missed chances as the stand-off continued
But Dusan Vlahovic proved the difference eight minutes into the second-half to draw Juventus ahead on Wednesday
Erling Haaland saw came close five minutes before the break but couldn’t put the chance away
Kevin De Bruyne also tried to mount a comeback on foreign soil but couldn’t pick the lock
Guardiola’s side continued to look low on confidence – and seem perilously close to missing out on Champions League knockout qualification altogether
There was a reminder of what this team can do though. Erling Haaland saw the whites of Michele Di Gregorio’s eyes five minutes before the break and owed it all to Kevin De Bruyne, whose extraordinary reverse pass had Juventus stumbling over their own feet – the obvious ball initially seemed to be for Bernardo Silva out on the right – only for Haaland to not quite lift the chip properly. The goalkeeper saved superbly. Guardiola rubbed his face. Less of that, you’ll leave a mark.
Vlahovic and Ederson both left theirs eight minutes after the restart, Juventus leading and City not helping themselves. Federico Gatti’s sweet volley was kept out by Ederson but Josko Gvardiol could only pass into space, allowing another cross to come in. Vlahovic nestled between defenders and bulleted a header straight at Ederson. The force was such that it dragged the goalkeeper behind the line with it.
Another avoidable moment in a long, long list now, with Ederson failing to hold a vicious Yildiz cross and almost gifting a second. There were Juve blocks, a smart save to deny Gundogan. Jeremy Doku nearly picked out Haaland in the six-yard box. But as Gundogan admitted, always that lingering fear going the other way.
The final ignominy came 15 minutes from the end when Weston McKennie volleyed in Timothy Weah’s smart cross. That’s Weston McKennie who left Leeds United after 20 fairly hopeless appearances in their relegation season. It feels like a joke. Merton can have that one for this week.
