5 Things We Learnt From Liverpool v Man City

After Sunday’s top of the table clash between Manchester City and Liverpool what have we learnt?

Mendy is good at what he does

Benjamin Mendy has made significant contributions in his game time for Manchester City so far this season in his attacking prowess. His fast paced crossing of the ball has directly led to some of the most exciting attacking play City have undertaken. His rangy running and sheer force of power has rendered opposition defences confused and bemused.

But if there has been a part of his game which has come under scrutiny it has been his defending. On occasion he has been caught out of position defensively, leaving Manchester City vulnerable to attacks from the flanks. Against Liverpool Mendy tracked back well and effectively cut off the Liverpool attacking route of the second ball. Whilst it was his first game back after a lengthy injury lay off, he looked comfortable in defence and went some way to silencing his critics.

The CB pairing of the future

Aymeric Laporte and John Stones look like the defensive centre back pairing of the future. Guardiola now has a potential Centre back partnership of his choice – having inherited Vincent Kompany and Nicolas Otamendi. It was much to everyone’s surprise that last season Otamendi stepped up to the requirements Guardiola had set. I for one, wasn’t sure Otamendi was capable enough on the ball or quick enough in the challenge to become the kind of defender who is crucial to the Guardiola system.

Certainly Guardiola added Laporte as part of the future. Both Stones and Laporte were selected by Guardiola for their apparent comfortable passing and control of the ball in possession. This is Guardiola’s Manchester version of his Pique/Puyol Barcelona partnership. This is early days though, both players are young and will only improve with game time. Laporte adds confidence and reliability – a sturdiness – to the side. His range of passing is significant – able to cast long balls with precision to cut defensive lines.

His natural left foot – adds considerable balance to the City side. If anything he has suffered from very little game time with Mendy on the left to craft their relationship. Against Liverpool we saw a glimpse of our future with the solid centre back pairing, playing comfortably and successfully snuffing out any opportunities for what is reputedly Europe’s most formidable attackers.

Leroy Sane is back

Leroy Sane has endured a slow start to the season in many ways, which for a player so blessed with natural pace, seems like a surprise. Whether its a recovery from the summer of disappointments having been left out of the World Cup Squad by Germany at the last minute despite being voted the Young Player of the Season 2017/18, or the impact of the birth of his daughter upon his family unit, is unclear.

Guardiola also seems to have been motivating Sane in his own inimitable style. By his own admission Guardiola says winning a second consecutive title is difficult and requires all the players to up their game. Guardiola has therefore dropped Sane from some match day squads, entertained talk of attitudes at Press Conferences and berated Sane from the touchline. To his credit Sane has responded in the best way possible. He has not dropped his head, he comes off the bench if asked. He runs forwards against defences – frightening opposition full backs – skipping at will and speed.

He now also willingly retreats to press the ball and seek to recover lost possession. Sane is working harder now and it is a treat to see. Against Liverpool, Sane stretched the their defensive lines. Striking terror with his running he sucked the World’s most expensive defender, Virgil Van Dijk, into making a poorly timed challenge and giving away the penalty. Sane is back.

Riyad Mahrez is excellent

Riyad Mahrez has considerable skill and isn’t afraid to show it. Confidence and belief in his abilities doesn’t seem to be a problem for him. He indulges in step-overs at every opportunity to suck in the fullbacks towards him before striding out at speed, his spindly stick thin legs somehow propelling him forwards.

He is one of the slightest footballers I have ever seen. All sinew and bone. How he withstands the challenges he receives or has the energy to maintain performances are miracles of modern science. Against Liverpool Mahrez played differently. He operated without the usual freedoms, sacrificing himself often to retain possession and engage in less showboaty moments.

This was a measured and contained performance of attrition. The penalty has been well documented and seemed to generate some kind of minor twitter meltdown amongst some of Manchester City’s newest fans but its time to put that into perspective. Do you remember his double touch penalty for Leicester last season against us? It was disallowed because it was judged to have touched both his feet.

That miss didn’t effect his confidence or performance- indeed he has gone on to become our record signing. In the high stakes game at Anfield he had the confidence to accept the penalty and hit the ball so hard and high it is probably still aiming towards the International Space Station. He shrugged and moved on. He was disappointed but not crushed. In short he has the mentality of a talented and committed professional footballer – in that miss, his character and poise was captured.

Mahrez is looking like an excellent acquisition. The step up he has had to make from Leicester to Manchester City is considerable – not dis-similar to the step up Sane had to make from Shalke – and accounts for the slower starts both players made upon joining. It takes time to manage this transition to playing alongside truly world class players where every half touch is an opportunity. It is to his credit that Mahrez is changing his game and developing to be exactly the kind of strong acquisition we needed to our squad.

City miss Kevin De Bruyne

Manchester City top the Premier League Table after 8 games with superior goal difference. We went to Anfield, potentially one of the other teams who may be challenging for the title, and came away with a creditable draw, having limited Liverpool’s attacking options. All of this has been achieved without our very best player, the talismanic Kevin de Bruyne.

Last season de Bruyne was the one player Guardiola found difficult to drop or rest for any games. His contribution to the team and the way in which Manchester City perform is vital. Not just because of his fantastic – world class – range of passing. I swear he could find a pass blindfolded and still perfectly weight a ball three quarters of the length of the pitch. His passing and running is the part of his game most people see, but his greatest contribution is often his unselfishness, his willingness to put in the hard yards.

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De Bruyne recovers lost possession so quickly, he closes down the opposition pass. He undertakes a variety of roles within the team, often switching mid game – from deep lying play maker, to right winger to no 10. The positional awareness is a joy to behold. He has had a couple of months recovering from a ligament injury. This is the longest lay off he has had in nearly 3 years – he has been so invaluable to both City and Belgium he has not had the opportunity for any rest. So after the International break de Bruyne will start his return to the first team having resumed full training last week.

He always seems like a player who needs limited training and game time to get back up to full speed so I am hopeful he will recover to previous levels of performance very quickly – hopefully against Burnley in our first game back. So Kevin de Bruyne is back – fit and rested and available to add some superstar quality to our midfield as we begin to embark upon a run of games which will come to define our season.

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