Manchester City coach, Enzo Maresca, appeared somewhat upset - if not completely distraught - following his team's defeat in the last round against Nottingham Forest. After seven consecutive victories at the beginning of the season, came three consecutive defeats. It is an extremely rare scenario that has only happened once before in the history of the English Premier League, and that was with Sheffield Wednesday in the 1904-1905 season. Maresca pointed out that the three defeats were different from each other, even though his team was the party that had the most possession of the ball and created the most chances in each of them.
In the match that ended in a 2-1 loss to Aston Villa about two weeks ago, Manchester City had 63 percent possession of the ball and created 15 chances compared to 8 for Aston Villa. In the 1-0 defeat at home to Brighton in the penultimate round, Manchester City’s possession rate reached 62 percent, and it created 21 chances compared to 7 for the opponent. As for the City Ground, the home of Nottingham Forest, Manchester City’s possession rate reached 79 percent, and they created 12 chances compared to the competitor’s 11. So from a certain angle, Mariska seems right; The team can look at the basic statistics and claim that they were unlucky, although Nottingham Forest can point out that they entered that match ranked third in the “expected goals” table, while they were in the penultimate position in the actual Premier League table.
But there is another statistic that should worry Maresca, as Manchester City has not succeeded in keeping a clean sheet since its victory over Liverpool at Anfield following the previous international break, that is, nine matches ago. Before that match, the team conceded three goals against Sunderland. In the last eight matches, Manchester City conceded 17 times. Although three of these goals can be partly attributed to mistakes by Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, there are clear problems in the team's construction as well. The team suffers from gaps in defensive transitions that Nottingham Forest exploited brilliantly, a weakness that is not strange to the teams led by Maresca. Among the criticisms directed at him, whether at Leicester City or Chelsea, is that the teams he coaches were characterized by excessive caution when possessing the ball. But this seems logical given his reliance on a very advanced defense line.
This is also why bilateral conflicts are of paramount importance in the teams he coaches; Losing the ball means posing a huge and direct threat to the defense line consisting of four players. Maresca seemed very frustrated with the superiority of the Nottingham Forest players in the physical struggles during the first half; Losing the ball gives the opponent the opportunity to move towards a defensive line with vast spaces behind it. This remains a perennial problem, and is even more acute when the opposition striker is a player like Liam Delap, who has regained his form and is determined to make up for more than a year of disappointing performances.
However, Maresca's chosen midfield was prone to physical decline in front of opponents. Maresca clearly rates Enzo Fernandes highly - so much so that the club paid £125 million ($167.7 million) to sign him from Chelsea - but Fernandes, despite his great footballing talent, is not physically imposing by Premier League standards. When he played alongside Cole Palmer, Chelsea sometimes looked like a team lacking physical strength. However, Maresca was adamant about playing the Argentine, to the point where he devised complex tactical solutions at Chelsea, such as employing Malo Gusto in a role that combines right-back and playmaker.
The team is currently facing similar problems; Faryan Chergui is a very talented attacking midfielder, but he cannot be relied upon in defensive roles, whether in terms of his positioning or his willingness to return to support the defensive line - a point that Pep Guardiola pointed out last season - and opponents may outperform him physically. This doesn't necessarily pose a major problem if there are two energetic, energetic and mobile players behind him; Like an Elliot Anderson-type player (who moves between the lines), and a defensive-minded player who takes on the tasks of anchoring or recovering the ball, similar to Rodri.
But with Rodri gone, Anderson finds himself having to do an enormous physical burden. If Anderson is not in the right position - such as a defender losing the ball in a dangerous area, or an opponent crossing the midfield - the team becomes completely exposed very quickly. Maresca said that he will take advantage of the current international break to re-evaluate matters, noting that this case is a rare exception; It would have been better for the team not to play another match immediately after the defeat, which would give it a chance to overcome its effects. Perhaps a tactical solution can be found - perhaps one that goes beyond simply avoiding playing Fernandes and Chergui together at the same time. But Maresca must also realize that by the time Premier League matches resume, the team may be out of the title race, or perhaps - more practically - out of the Premier League altogether!
During the previous international break, an independent panel announced that the club had been found guilty of all but one charge brought against it by the Premier League. There is speculation that sanctions may be announced during the current international break. Of course, it is very difficult to know the extent of this impact on the players inside the green rectangle, in light of the threat of deducting a large number of points; But if their initial attitude of defiance turns into a state of acceptance mixed with resentment, it can lead to losing matches, and a decline in intensity and desire to win.
«Guardian Service»
