It looked like Rodri's serious knee injury would define Man City's season. However, no one expected the Spanish midfielder's absence to hurt The Citizens so badly.
Mateo Kovacic was a signing that Pep Guardiola saw as more of a stopgap than a rebuild. And the Croatian’s inability to stop the counter-attacks that are killing City’s title hopes is alarming. The lack of a defensively minded midfielder has left them alarmingly vulnerable.
The number of quick counter-attacks that result in shots on goal for Man City is higher than ever under Guardiola. Not controlling the counter-attacks weakens their play.
Up front, the decision to let Julian Alvarez leave for Atletico Madrid in the summer leaves them without a clear replacement for Erling Haaland. The Argentine scored seven goals during Haaland’s injury spell last winter. And who will do it now?
Of course, besides the sale of Cole Palmer to Chelsea, it is simply understood that Man City is trying to meet the requirements of the Financial Fair Play Law. However, the problem lies in the fact that The Citizens still spend money to bring in many expensive new players.
The Etihad club paid £53m to sign Matheus Nunes from Wolves at the end of last summer, a huge fee for a player who has only made 11 Premier League appearances since then, and Guardiola still doesn't feel comfortable playing the midfielder.
Jack Grealish, signed for £100m, more or less established himself during City’s treble-winning campaign. But the fact that the Citizens have continued to sign other wingers since then suggests that the Englishman’s performances have been unconvincing.
Grealish’s goal tally has long been a mystery, with the striker failing to score in any competition for the club in 2024. The same goes for Savinho, who has yet to score for City.
The presence of Ilkay Gundogan in midfield alongside Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva explains why pace is such a big issue for City. Kyle Walker faces similar challenges in defence. Even John Stones is now 30.
Only three players in the entire Man City squad are aged between 25 and 28 - Nunes, Rodri and Ruben Dias. They are the only team in the Premier League to give the majority of their playing time to players aged 29 or over.
The development of young talent like Rico Lewis will take time. However, the decline of veterans cannot be stopped. Guardiola will work to fix and cover up these shortcomings, but it will take time and transfer windows to resolve.
