Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca is facing his first real challenge. After beginning the season brilliantly and not having to deal with any real losses, the last three matches have been far less fun.
The hope was that it would change against a feisty Bundesliga club, RB Leipzig, on Wednesday in Champions League play. The task wasn't going to be an easy one, though. Leipzig was going to make scoring a challenging thing to do by playing so deep on defense that they might as well have had 10 keepers.
The match was likely one Leipzig hoped to steal, and City might have just needed a goal to secure victory (they needed three, including an own goal, to win 3-2). A real battle the match was destined to be.
Quic reactions to Manchester City's Champions League match against RB Leipzig
Leipzig learned quickly they could play with Man City
At first, Leipzig appeared set for some kind of City onslaught, packing in their defense, but as the first half developed, the German club realized that they could also be on the attack quite a lot. If anything, they appeared to be the club with more skilled players, keeping City on its heels at times.
This could simply be due to how tired City must be, but that's looking at the situation positively. The reality could be that, other than Erling Haaland, the club is so in between that lesser clubs will have opportunities to earn victories against City.
Manchester City's sense of urgency is missing
In what could be the club's last relatively normal season, depending on when sanctions are handed down, one would think the club would play as if it wanted to take all the titles it can while it has a chance. That certainly hasn't been the case in recent Premier League play, and Leipzig absolutely took the fight to City, showing no fear against the bigger club.
The beginning of the second half was just brutal force by Leipzig, playing as if they were taking on a bunch of teenagers. City was lucky that the German side didn't score three goals early in the half. Maresca's club was only tied because of a Leipzig own goal in the first half.
Antoine Semenyo is truly missed
While Haaland is clearly capable of creating his own excellence, Manchester City is missing Semenyo's ability to disrupt on the wing. His speed has to be accounted for, and without it, City must rely more on staid set pieces. That isn't working.
This could be the reality for a while, as Semenyo is out for quite a while longer. Had he played against Leipzig, the narrative of the match might have changed. Unfortunately, that's a rather moot point.
A win is a win no matter how pretty
We can definitely argue over beauty points, but what really matters is just to win and go home. City's victory was also Leipzig first home loss in any competition this season, so that makes the tight victory a bit more special.
Now, City can turn its focus to Nottingham Forest on Saturday before getting a breather for two weeks. After that, the cycle begins anew. After returning on November 21 against Fulham, the Blues will play nine matches in 28 days.
Add us as a preferred source on Google