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Manchester City vs Swansea City preview: Time to kick on

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Manchester City - Swansea City preview: Time to kick on

After their excellent result in midweek, can the Citizens kick on with a Premier League win over managerless Swansea – or will inconsistency creep in again?

With all things considered, there probably isn’t a better time for Manchester City to face Swansea.

Going into the Christmas period, with fixtures coming thick and fast, the Swans travel to Eastlands in the hope that they can snatch a positive result at the Ethiad.

Important fixture for both sides

It certainly will not be easy for them, and there are plenty of weaknesses within the side that can be exploited by City’s counter-attacking brilliance, which makes you wonder why Manuel Pellegrini‘s men aren’t dominating what has been, an unpredictable season to say the least this term.

Garry Monk’s sacking yesterday just highlights, yet again, the cut-throat nature of football – which after all, is a business nowadays. Yes, the Swans have only won one in eleven League games, and have struggled for form.

Contrasting form – does it mean anything though?

But even still, why should the first thought be to blame the manager? This has been the case for a number of weeks now, and in many games, they’ve been unlucky not to grab a good result out of them – most notably, narrow losses to Stoke, Norwich and Liverpool.

City meanwhile, are a side rejuvenated after their Champions League triumph in midweek. They made history by topping their group for the first time – and did so in enthralling style with a 4-2 home victory over Borussia Mönchengladbach on Tuesday.

They’ll be encouraged by that result, knowing they need to maintain consistency if they are to have any chance of sustaining a proper challenge for the Premier League title.

Team news

Manchester City

Six first-team players are currently sidelined for the hosts, but Sergio Agüero (ankle) is expected to return to the fray in some vein or another ahead of kick-off on Saturday afternoon.

He has missed three games in all competitions since limping off during their 3-1 win over Southampton at the end of November having landed awkwardly in an aerial challenge in the box. Reassuring supporters the injury was not too serious, he was not risked for the games against Hull (Cup) or the defeat to Stoke last weekend.

So, he could make a timely return this time around. Fernando (hamstring) hobbled off with ten minutes to play during their 2-0 defeat at the Britannia, and is not expected to feature for at least another seven to ten days – which is a similar time frame to that of defensive duo Vincent Kompany (calf) and Pablo Zabaleta (knee).

Martin Demichelis (knee) could return to the substitutes’ bench, whilst Samir Nasri (hamstring) is the only long-term absentee.

Swansea City

As for the visitors, they only have two injuries to contend with. Fullback Franck Tabanou (hip) is expected to return to training next week, whilst Portuguese forward Éder is a doubt with an ankle issue – and has had to be patient with the amount of match time he has played recently.

They will undoubtedly be the underdogs ahead of kick-off, but they’ll embrace the tag and look to inflict City’s third League defeat in their last four games.

Ultimately, they’ve got nothing to lose. Managerless, under scrutiny and struggling for form, they’ll hope to give their travelling supporters something to celebrate on the way home. City are a very strong side, but often lack the consistency – both domestically, and in Europe – to justify themselves as a European powerhouse.

Traditionally over the past few seasons, Swansea have always been a feared side for the bigger sides. Mainly because they enjoy spells of possession, love counter-attacking football, and can score at any moment.

Sigurdsson and Montero are just two of Swansea's key players, that City will be weary of defensively (Image: Daily Mail)

But as well as that, they pass the ball across the pitch excellently. They’ve got plenty of key players – Jonjo Shelvey, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Jefferson Montero especially – that can cause upsets.

It will not be an easy ride for City, you feel.

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Southampton 1-1 Aston Villa: Romeu to the rescue for Saints

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Southampton 1-1 Aston Villa: Romeu to the rescue for Saints

Oriol Romeu’s 73rd minute strike ensured Ronald Koeman’s men avoided a fourth consecutive defeat in all competitions – as well as keeping Remi Garde’s wait for a first PL win as Villa manager intact.

It was just the one point for Southampton as they entertained Aston Villa in one of Saturday’s 3pm kick-off’s at St.Mary’s, but could – and probably should – have been all three.

Early team news

The hosts, eager to respond positively after a Cup thrashing by Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool side on Wednesday evening, were boosted by the returns of Jose Fonté as well as James Ward-Prowse and previously suspended Graziano Pellé going into the fixture itself.

Maarten Stekelenburg continued in goal, with Jordy Clasie and Shane Long just two of the viable options for Ronald Koeman to choose from the substitutes’ bench.

Chances, but no goals to show for it

Southampton could have found themselves infront with a two-goal cushion, but somehow, the scoreline remained goalless for the majority of the first-half.

Dusan Tadić fired over the crossbar from close-range, after good work down the flank by Sadio Mané to create the opportunity for the Serbian. Then, Tadić created a good chance of his own. His inch-perfect ball curled into the path of Pellé on the run towards goal, but his first-time effort flashed over the woodwork.

Victor Wanyama headed wide at the far post, Mané missed a volley, Fonte saw a goalbound effort cleared off the line by opposition striker Rudy Gestede – Southampton were all over their visitors, the opening goal was inevitable.

Villa snatch undeserved opener

It came in due course, but against the run of play as Villa snatched the lead – on the stroke of halftime no less. Jordan Veretout‘s corner delivery bounced up awkwardly towards the far post, and former Manchester City centre-back Joleon Lescott beat Fonte to the ball, tapping home with ease to break the deadlock in surprising fashion.

Lescott celebrates his finish from close-range as Villa took the lead
Photo: Getty | Undeserved, but he won’t mind! Lescott celebrates his late first-half opener from close-range with Ayew, Sinclair and Sanchez

Going into the interval, So’ton were down and understandably frustrated. They created so many chances, and somehow, they were losing. Virgil van Dijk came close with a headed effort, Wanyama trudged off with a knock whilst substitute Juanmi was lively in the final third, coming ever so close to levelling the scoring.

A well-deserved equaliser – from an unlikely source

It was only a matter of time, and the goal did eventually come from an unlikely source. Ward-Prowse’ corner-kick delivery floated past the defenders near the goalline, but substitute Oriol Romeu, who’d only been on the pitch for ten minutes, reacted quickly to slot home from close-range and give Southampton a deserved equaliser.

The hosts pressed for a late winner, but the tempo of the game itself was overshadowed by plenty of timewasting tactics by the visitors – souring the mood and flow of the game in the dying stages.

Shane Long came on, added another attacking outlet but neither him nor any of his teammates could steal a late winner, despite being the better side on the afternoon.

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Stoke City 2-0 Manchester City: Superb Potters sink sluggish Citizens

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Stoke City 2-0 Manchester City: Superb Potters sink sluggish Citizens

A first-half double from Marko Arnautović – both created by Xherdan Shaqiri, helped the Potters seal a well-earned victory against the Premier League leaders; who started slowly and were sluggish all afternoon.

Manchester City aimed for maximum points on a tough trip to the Britannia in the Premier League‘s opening fixture of the weekend. A first-half brace from Marko Arnautović fired Stoke City to a well-deserved victory, as they took advantage of the League leaders’ slow start with counter-attacking brilliance throughout on a windy afternoon in Staffordshire.

Early team news

City had a few injury concerns to contend with – Sergio Agüero (ankle) was a doubt, and consequently, not risked. However, they were boosted by the returns of crucial creative midfielder David Silva (ankle) and first-choice goalkeeper Joe Hart (hamstring) in the starting XI.

Unsurprisingly given his unfortunate injury history, Fabian Delph was left on the substitutes’ bench with the Brazilian duo of Fernando and Fernandinho the two holding midfielders ahead of the backline.

Potters start fast, City sluggish

Manchester City held the majority of possession in the first-half, but were unable to grab a few goals to justify their spells on the ball. Their hosts, on the other hand, started brightly and always looked a dangerous threat on the counter-attack.

Xherdan Shaqiri and Marko Arnautović’s link-up play was a joy to behold in the final third; between the two forwards, they were easing their way towards Joe Hart’s area with seeming ease every time.

Fernando struggled to contain the threat on his side of midfield, whilst the opening goal epitomised Stoke’s threat on the break. Shaqiri danced past three players before cutting the ball back into the area for Arnautović – who fired home from close range past a helpless Hart with the goal gaping at the Austrian’s mercy.

Arnautovic (pictured) celebrates as Stoke break the deadlock in style | Photo: Getty

Kevin de Bruyne came close to levelling the scoring at the other end, but for a smart stop from Jack Butland – merely stinging the goalkeeper’s gloves in the face of potential pressure on his goal.

Stoke drive forward with pace and purpose

Then, Stoke grew in confidence. Shaqiri continued his playmaking exploits and created another excellent assist, spotting Arnautović’s run to perfection.

The former Inter Milan maverick was gifted another opportunity to score, and he was never going to miss from that range – tapping home with Hart unable to close down the angles quickly enough. Arnautovic could, and should, have grabbed a hat-trick, but the post denied him after more good work in-and-around the box.

City had chances, which were overshadowed by Bojan’s magic

de Bruyne was, unsurprisingly, City’s focal point in attack, but was unable to find teammates in space to pass to. David Silva’s effectiveness was relatively snuffed out as Stoke ensured they had marked him tightly in 50-50 duels, and Wilfried Bony was isolated up-top with virtually no service to test Butland from.

Bojan Krkic was certainly enjoying himself too, as he always went on a dribble forward with the ball at his feet. City’s defenders struggled to get near him, and he was left to create magic in midfield with the home supporters left in awe.

Silva combined well with Raheem Sterling on the left, and the young Englishman, who turns 21 next week, found fullback Aleksandar Kolarov rushing down the flank in space.

The Serbian latched onto Sterling’s well-weighted pass, and let fly with a powerful strike goalwards. Unfortunately for him though, Butland was equal to the effort and the danger was averted.

It could have been more than a two-goal cushion going into the half-time interval, everyone knew.

Surprising decision by Pellegrini

A big surprise as the second-half began though, was that Manuel Pellegrini kept the team the same. No substitutions, as the Chilean possibly felt his side couldn’t perform in the same vein, especially as they were losing and had to chase the game for goals.

Nicolas Otámendi was brandished the first and only yellow card of the match after 50 minutes, for a cynical kick on Shaqiri – who made him look silly with a few cheeky drag backs.

Pellegrini’s patience was wearing thin, and after 55 minutes, he made a double substitution in an attempt to change things. Fernandinho and Bony were brought off – in place of Delph and Kelechi Iheanacho in like-for-like swaps, whilst Sterling operated in a more attacking role to partner the young Nigerian who’d just been introduced to the fray.

Bojan’s cheeky backflick fell perfectly for Arnautovic in the area, and despite having the chance to go for goal himself, the Austrian unselfishly squared the ball towards the path of Shaqiri. Somehow though, Shaqiri was unable to get proper contact on the ball, which trickled out for a goal-kick.

Standing ovations and worse news for visitors

Stoke were on-fire and City looked helpless to stop them. Bojan was taken off to a standing ovation from the home supporters, as was Shaqiri with the clock ticking down on the affair, but things were about to go from bad to worse for the sky Blues.

Fernando pulled his hamstring with 15 minutes to play and was unable to continue as a result, as Jesús Navas was introduced in place of Silva prior to the Brazilian’s injury, meaning City had no more substitutions to choose from. That, quite literally, typified the problems that the visitors were facing. Ironically, the 10-men of City looked more convincing in possession than they did with eleven. A poor showing, and questions will relentlessly be asked of Pellegrini’s man-management, simply due to the manner of their defeat today. A very bad day at the office.

Leicester City, as well as Manchester United and Arsenal, all have the opportunity to leapfrog the Citizens in the table – after this disappointing result. Their third defeat in their previous five fixtures (all competitions), not exactly the type of display you’d expect from a side challenging for the league title.

As for the hosts, Mark Hughes will be understandably delighted with his team’s collective performance, where they made the League leaders look ordinary for large parts of the game. They’ve moved up into 9th place with the rest of this weekend’s action still to play, and they’ll be confidently hoping they can cement themselves in the top eight if performances like this one, are anything to go by.

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Manchester City 3-1 Southampton: Citizens back to winning ways

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Manchester City 3-1 Southampton: Citizens back to winning ways

Goals from Kevin de Bruyne, Fabian Delph and Aleksandar Kolarov helped the Citizens get back to winning ways, with a comfortable 3-1 victory against Ronald Koeman’s men – who started slowly and were consequently punished.

Manchester City regained top spot in the Premier League with a comfortable 3-1 home victory against Southampton in one of the 3pm kick-off’s today.

The hosts were eager to get back to winning ways after defeats against Liverpool and Juventus within the space of a week – and got on the front foot from the referee’s first whistle at the Ethiad.

City begin quickly, and get their reward

Raheem Sterling came close to breaking the deadlock after just a minute, with a sharp one-two between himself and Yaya Touré on the edge of the box. The 20-year-old curled an effort goalwards, but goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg made a good reflex save down to his right to parry the ball away to safety.

Saints punished for sloppy start

Southampton didn’t start particularly quickly, and they could have scored once more after five minutes. Aleksandar Kolarov‘s free-kick swerved towards the top corner and Stekelenburg’s save was good, but the ball skipped off the slick turf. Between Nicolas Otámendi and Fernandinho, neither could turn the ball in from close-range.

City did eventually break the deadlock though, through great work by Raheem Sterling. He dispossessed Maya Yoshida of the ball near the centre circle, and punished the visitors to good effect. He accelerated forward with pace and purpose, driving into the area before an unselfish cutback fell neatly into the path of Kevin de Bruyne. The talented Belgian was left with only a simple tap-in, and this time, Stekelenburg could get nowhere near it.

Stekelenburg called into action

A sloppy pass gifted City another opportunity to find the back of the net, with a counter-attacking move being snuffed out by the sharp reflexes of Stekelenburg, once more. Sergio Agüero was inches away from doubling the hosts’ lead, instead, his effort on-goal was thwarted and trickled out of play for a corner-kick as the experienced Dutchman came rushing off his line to intercept the ball.

The resulting set-piece was poorly defended but the visitors were let off as a header flashed wide of the mark. In the 20th minute though, the lead was doubled. Fabian Delph‘s thunderous effort took a deflection off Virgil van Dijk near the penalty spot – spinning past Stekelenburg into the corner of the net. On his first start for the sky Blues, the former Aston Villa captain marked it with a goal, and City were fully in control.

Chances aplenty at the Ethiad

It could have been very different if van Dijk’s rasping effort did not cannon off the crossbar a minute later, though. After a promising passing spell near the edge of the area, the centre-back let fly and second-choice goalkeeper Willy Caballero dived helplessly as the strike seemed destined for the top corner.

Sterling fired over the bar whilst Shane Long stung Caballero’s gloves with the first-half’s action coming to an eventual close. Two-nil down with plenty of football left to play, Southampton were behind but certainly not out of the contest itself.

Long’s effort made for good viewing

Whatever Ronald Koeman said to his players in the dressing room, it must have worked. Just five minutes into the second-half, the deficit was halved in effective fashion. Sadio Mané delivered a teasing cross into the box, and Long was sharp to meet the ball with a sweetly-connected header, giving Caballero no chance from close range.

2-1, and it was game on again.

Game on again – within an instant

Tadic came close with a deft chip from close range, before Long saw his powerful half-volley parried away by Caballero as the visitors were certainly beginning to turn the screw attacking-wise, for the first real period of the match itself.

Agüero gave the home supporters a scare as he went down clutching his ankle in pain after falling awkwardly following an aerial challenge in the area. He limped off the pitch, being replaced by Wilfried Bony – but later concerns were relieved as the knock was described as a minor one.

Neatly-worked team goal seals all three points

In his absence, a well-crafted team goal sealed all three points with twenty minutes to go. Another stop from Caballero ensured Tadic was unable to level proceedings, as the Serbian’s curling drive was creeping towards the far corner.

At the other end, Kolarov got himself on the scoresheet in some style too. Sterling passed the ball onto Bony in the area, his backflick fell to the path of de Bruyne to his right. Instead of taking a shot for himself, de Bruyne cooly flicked the ball up in the air for Kolarov – who needed no invitation to shoot – and despite having two men on the goalline, his powerful effort arrowed into the bottom corner.

Both sides made substitutions with the clock ticking down, with the notable alteration seeing David Silva being introduced into the fray with fifteen minutes left to play. Having been sidelined for six weeks after an injury he’d picked up on international duty, the midfield maestro was back and greeted to a warm round of applause around Eastlands.

A positive learning experience

Mané and Bony both had decent chances to score for either side, but the scoreline remained 3-1 and it was ultimately a deserved victory for Manchester City.

Despite their much-improved second-half performance, the damage was already inflicted from Southampton’s point of view, and it’ll be a positive learning experience – they cannot afford to give away possession and as many chances as they allowed City to create in the first 45.

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Southampton 0-1 Stoke City: Bojan ends Saints’ unbeaten run

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Southampton 0-1 Stoke City: Bojan ends Saints' unbeaten run

Bojan’s 10th minute opener was all the visitors needed to halt Southampton’s unbeaten run – in an effective away display at St. Mary’s.

Southampton‘s unbeaten run of eleven matches across all competitions, was ended by Mark Hughes‘ Stoke City side – who were defensively disclipined and constantly provided a counter-attacking threat in the final third.

Bojan Krkić scored the game’s only goal after just ten minutes, but it could have been more from the visitors after an early start to proceedings.

Intriguing start in opening exchanges

Before the opener, Dušan Tadić was unlucky to see his effort narrowly flash wide of Jack Butland‘s far post. A goalmouth scramble ensued in the box as Stoke struggled to clear their lines, and the Serbian creative midfielder pounced on the danger but was unable to break the deadlock.

The build-up to the goal itself was well worked by Stoke in fairness to them, after Xherdan Shaqiri got on the ball from the right-hand side, drove towards the edge of the box and pulled two defenders out of position to try and contain his threat.

Stoke catch Saints on the break

The ball was quickly shifted towards the left, with Erik Pieters swinging in a teasing ball into the area itself. Jose Fonté was caught static and Bojan made the Portuguese centre-back pay with a clinical flick on, giving goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg no chance.

Shaqiri almost made it two in six minutes, but for a good reaction stop by Stekelenburg. Marko Arnautovic‘s long-ball forward found Bojan, who slipped through an inviting ball towards Shaqiri. His low effort seemed destined for the bottom corner, but Stekelenburg had other ideas and parried the danger.

Potters picked their moments to get forward

Chances came at a premium for the rest of the first-half, with Southampton defensively looking vulnerable when trying to deal with the counter-attack.

Tadić fired over the crossbar before the interval, then defensive midfielder Victor Wanyama saw his effort flash narrowly wide as the second 45 began and the hosts went in search of an equaliser.

Possession battle: Wanyama and Shaqiri tussle for possession in midfield | Picture: Getty Images

Ironic jeers reverberated around the stadium when Arnautovic fired high and wide with a golden opportunity to make it two, with only the goalkeeper to beat. But you could definitely tell that the home supporters were getting edgy, as they had to make the most of their half-chances.

With time ticking down on the affair, Graziano Pellé was unlucky not to be awarded a penalty-kick after a high foot from Philipp Wollscheid – who missed the ball completely – was waved play on somehow by the referee. After this, you could tell it wasn’t going to be Southampton’s day.

Ibrahim Afellay came close to sealing the three points, and although it was a narrow victory, it was a deserved one too for the visitors. They started brightly, hit Southampton on the counter-attack and Ronald Koeman‘s men struggled to get going in the early exchanges.

As a consequence, The Saints‘ unbeaten run has been ended AND they miss out on the chance to leapfrog Everton, West Ham and Tottenham into fifth place – whilst Stoke move up to 11th after an effective away display, even though they should have scored a few more of their chances.

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Manchester City 1-4 Liverpool: Blues humbled by efficient visitors

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Manchester City 1-4 Liverpool: Blues humbled by efficient visitors

Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino, Martin Skrtel and an own goal from Eliaqium Mangala helped the visitors thrash Manuel Pellegrini’s men, in efficient fashion at the Ethiad – with City fans leaving in their droves before the full-time whistle.

Manuel Pellegrini would certainly have been ruing a few of his team selections by the full-time whistle, as his Manchester City side were overpowered by a Liverpool team who simply wanted the three points more.

Questions were asked ahead of kick-off given some of the surprising choices that the Chilean made to the starting XI, with Eliaquim Mangala and Martin Demichelis starting in the centre of defence, as opposed to the usual pairing of Nicolas Otámendi and Vincent Kompany – which has been very solid this term.

Citizens punished for slow start

The visitors took advantage of a slow start to proceedings, as Bacary Sagna was robbed in possession by Philippe Coutinho. The midfield maestro unselfishly passed the ball across to his compatriot, Roberto Firmino, who fired a teasing low delivery into the box – which Mangala turned into his own net.

The opener was the epitome of City’s slow start to the first-half, as they struggled to maintain possession in midfield and were often overrun by Liverpool’s high intensity and overall energy in truth.

Coutinho and Firmino excellent for Reds

Coutinho and Firmino’s link-up play was a joy to watch, and they combined well to double the lead shortly after the 20-minute mark.

Firmino found himself in space down the right-han side, and performed a fantastic reverse pass into Coutinho’s feet. The 23-year-old made no mistake from eight yards out, netting his fourth goal in three appearances with composure to slot beneath a helpless Joe Hart in-between the posts.

City unable to stop Liverpool’s attacking exploits

The England number one was understandably frustrated, as were his teammates. They were, quite simply, being popped for fun – and had no answer to Liverpool’s attacking questions. Giving Coutinho and Firmino too much space and time on the ball was consequently punished to devastating effect, as the visitors’ pressure proved too much and they scored again after 32 minutes.

This time, it was Firmino on the scoresheet. Emre Can‘s stupendous backheel found the run of Coutinho in the area, and he passed the ball across to Firmino – scoring his first competitive Liverpool goal in some style.

City’s talisman pops up when needed most

Liverpool certainly wanted the victory more, but unsurprisingly, City’s best player stepped up to the plate when he was needed most.

Having just recovered from a hamstring injury, where he missed seven competitive games, Sergio Agüero gave Jürgen Klopp‘s men an un-needed headache on the stroke of half-time.

They made the mistake of giving him an inch of space from range, and from 20 yards, the talented Argentine fired home into the bottom corner with Simon Mignolet‘s sprawling dive ultimately in vain.

Time for a much-needed breather

As the half-time whistle blew, it was time for reflection for both sides. Having created an unwanted reputation for losing leads in winning positions, Liverpool supporters and players alike would have been silently hoping they had enough to secure all three points in a tough away fixture – against the Premier League leaders, after all.

City meanwhile, would have certainly been hoping for the half-time whistle for the opening 40 minute-spell. After Agüero’s goal though, they started to get themselves back into the match, slowly but surely.

Inspired substitutions

As the second-half began, Pellegrini made a double substitution. Fernandinho – who really should have started – and Fabian Delph, were introduced into the action in place of Yaya Touré and Jesús Navas, who were both very quiet. Unsurprisingly, the inclusion of Fernandinho, coupled with Delph’s eager and enthuasiasm to impress, meant they managed to tighten up the midfield and restrict the amount of freedom that Coutinho and Firmino were given.

With that in mind though, chances came at a premium for the hosts. Kevin de Bruyne always had a trick or two up his sleeve, but his teasing deliveries and excellent passes were always overlooked by a lack of potency in the final third.

Raheem against his former employers

Raheem Sterling, against his former club, had enjoyed a few positive attacking spells. Got himself into good attacking positions, but was unable to create or finish anything in-and-around the final third. Agüero was their focal point in attack, but his teammates were unable to utilise his threats properly. Instead, he was always creating opportunities out of nothing for himself, and was often forced to chase possession when Liverpool attempted to slow down the tempo and frustrate their hosts.

Joe Hart, who would have been disappointed to concede – let alone four – was one of City’s better performers on a forgettable evening. He made a succession of important saves to keep the scores respectable, including an excellent stop to deny Firmino on the hour mark with his right leg.

Aguero was replaced shortly afterwards, in place of 19-year-old forward Kelechi Iheanacho. Understandable considering the circumstances, especially as he’d just recovered from a hamstring injury – there was no point risking his fitness with the result virtually confirmed.

A final blow – from an unlikely source

The three points were technically still up for grabs, but Martin Skrtel had other ideas. With time ticking and City continuing to press their visitors to try and halve the deficit even further, Liverpool benefited from a set-piece and put the game to bed in emphatic fashion.

A corner was partially cleared, or so City players thought, as the Slovakian centre-back let fly from 18-yards out. His effort arrowed into the top corner, and the hosts’ hopes of snatching a point were well and truly out of the window.

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Analysis: What does Delph have to do, to stake a first-team starting claim?

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Analysis: What does Delph have to do, to stake a first-team starting claim?

Having endured a tough few months following his summer switch from Villa, what does the 25-year-old midfielder have to do to stake his claim for a regular starting berth in an ever-improving City side?

To this day, Fabian Delph has only managed four substitute appearances for the sky Blues since his summer move from Aston Villa. It has been a forgettable few months on a personal level for the midfielder, who at 25, made a bold decision to change his mind and put pen-to-paper on a four-year deal with the title challengers, and leave the west Midlands in sour fashion.

He has been plagued by hamstring injuries since his arrival, and is just now recovering from them – but he’ll be looking for more minutes in all competitive forms, to prove his worth to Manuel Pellegrini. Currently, the team often play a 4231 formation with two holding midfielders. Fernandinho is virtually a dead certainty to get into the team on most matchdays, simply because his work-rate is excellent and he does the dirty work in the centre of the park – allowing his teammates to break forward at speed in the process.

The other position alongside the Brazilian is therefore up for grabs. Yaya Touré is often ineffective in that role, he feels shackled and wants to be able to attack more often than defend, which can see him disregard his defensive duties.

Fernando meanwhile, has made significant progress of his own. Rewind to the start of 2015, the former Porto man was getting nowhere near the team. A poor, lethargic display against Middlesbrough in the FA Cup reiterated the reasons why he hadn’t been playing – but he has improved since then. Not known for his acceleration or long-shots, he often goes under the radar because, as a defensive-minded player, his job is to break up play. In recent months, he’s been doing that very well too, making interceptions and important sliding tackles when required to do so.

Where does that leave Delph, then?

Consistency

To get into the City team on a regular basis, it’s all about form. Categorically, if you are not playing well, you will not get picked – or suffer the embarrassment of being dropped down to the substitutes’ bench. However, it’s the way in which you deal with it, that counts.

Delph hasn’t started a game yet, not through any fault of his own, but he has been injured and Pellegrini is understandably cautious about the amount of playing time his players get, once they’ve recently recovered from injuries.

If you watch highlights of him playing last term for Villa, you’ll understand exactly why City bought him in the first place – he is energetic, can roam forward if required, but also doesn’t shy away from his defensive duties. He loves making tackles, tactical or not, and his interceptions are a big part of his game; his presence was the focal point behind the club’s fight to stave off relegation in the 2014/15 campaign, believe it or not.

Delph (pictured here with Villa) shields the ball away from Chelsea's Willian last term

Thick skin

Naturally, after such an acrimonious departure, his performances will have been overshadowed by fans’ reactions – plus his injury-plagued few months, too. He’ll have to deal with that in the best possible way, not only to prove his doubters wrong, but to his new supporters and himself, that this move was beneficial in terms of his development.

Taking the prime example of Raheem Sterling as a motivator, the 20-year-old has been hailed as one of the best youngsters in world football. He undeniably is one, but there were questions raised as to whether the Liverpool hierarchy were holding him back in his quest for ultimate success.

At the moment, they’re struggling to reach the top four, let alone challenge for titles. Delph needs to understand he made a similar decision for a reason, identify why this was, and make every effort in his power to force his way into the first-team plans.

Ultimately, he said he wants to be challenging for trophies and playing in the Champions League, City are doing this every year and getting stronger with experience. Aston Villa on the other hand, can only dream of challenging for titles at the moment – which is probably why their fans are so bitter about his departure in the first instance.

Avoid more injuries

It is probably the most obvious one, but unavoidable nonetheless. It’s always a gradual progression back into the team in general when you’ve been injured, not least twice in quick succession. He hasn’t had enough time to fully gel with his new teammates since the deal was agreed back in July – as he has been with the medical staff for the majority of time!

With that in mind though, Delph could actually prove to be like a new signing, provided he stays healthy for a sustained period of time. Pellegrini will be justifiably sweating over Delph’s fitness levels when called up to the England squad, too.

He is a very good player, but naturally, when you are not a star name in a team, people will be skeptical. Time for Delph to prove his critics wrong, then.

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Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 Aston Villa: Garde watches on as visitors lose seventh in a row

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Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 Aston Villa: Garde watches on as Villa lose seventh in a row

Goals from Moussa Dembele, Dele Alli and Harry Kane condemned Aston Villa to a seventh straight league defeat, as they went down 3-1 to Tottenham Hotspur.

Rémi Garde watched from the stands as his Aston Villa side suffered a seventh straight loss in the Premier League, slipping to a 3-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur on Monday night.

Moussa Dembele barged down the left wing before cutting inside to net with just 140 seconds played, before wonderkid Dele Alli doubled the lead on the stroke of half-time.

With Spurs cruising, Villa getting back into the game came as a shock, but they did. Jordan Ayew scored thanks to a deflection on 79 minutes, but it wasn’t enough, and Harry Kane sealed the win in added time.

MacDonald selects strange team

Despite Garde having been unveiled as manager hours before kick-off, interim boss Kevin MacDonald was on the touchline and picked the team.

Surprising a few by dropping Jordan Amavi in place of Kieran Richardson once more, there was a very experienced look to Villa’s starting XI, with the likes of Carles Gil only making the bench.

At the other end, Mauricio Pochettino had the easy decision of staying with the same 11 who dismantled Bournemouth by five goals to one a week prior.

Spurs take an early lead

It was indeed Tottenham who started brightly, and were consequently rewarded for their fast start. Just two minutes in, Mousa Dembele shrugged off the advances of Ciaran Clark in-and-around the penalty area, before neatly flicking the ball past Guzan at his near post. Villa had started slowly and were punished to devastating effect, their limp attempts to defend were exposed quite clearly, and they looked out-of-sorts in the early exchanges.

However, it was not all doom and gloom. Despite an unfortunate facial injury to Ashley Westwood in the dying embers of the first 45, Garde would have taken positives from his new side’s display. Ultimately, they should have created more in-front of goal, and been more fierce with their pressing out of possession, because they’d given their hosts too much space to roam through midfield and virtually pass the ball around them.

This meant for uncomfortable viewing and although they had a few half-chances of their own, the Villans surrendered too much of the ball to warrant a good team performance. Gabriel Agbonlahor should have been more patient when, on a counter attack, Grealish looked to slip him through past Toby Alderweireld. Instead, he was too eager to get in-behind the Spurs backline and ended up being penalized for a needless challenge on the Belgian.

Alli keeps his cool to double the lead

Dele Alli doubled Tottenham’s lead with a well-struck effort which nestled into the far corner, and it was deserved – both for the player, who was energetic throughout – and his teammates. But even still, the game was far from over.

As the second-half began, Spurs continued with the same pressing intensity that they’d finished the first with. Villa initially had rare spells of possession, but a loose ball or lapse in concentration saw a turnover in play, where the hosts were able to attack with both speed and purpose too.

Guzan watched on thankfully as Rose’ effort flashed over the crossbar, after a teasing ball towards the back post by Erik Lamela, getting the better of Richardson on the edge of the area.

Carles Gil was introduced with twenty-five minutes to play, in place of Jack Grealish – who was uncharacteristically quiet at times, apart from his well-struck effort which swerved narrowly wide of Lloris’ near post in the first 45. Richardson saw his name in the referee’s book for a late, cynical challenge on Lamela, who’d already skipped past him with audacious ease down the flank – and the chances started to dry up with the clock ticking down on the evening’s affair.

Christian Eriksen had two free-kick efforts: the first, cannoned back off the wall, the second, swerved wide of the crossbar – but an improved strike from the Dane’s first. Even though they were two-nil up, they were also far from plain sailing. Rudy Gestede, on at the break for an ineffective Agbonlahor, should have taken his opportunity at goal with more composure. Instead he watched on with frustration as his effort sailed over the bar and towards the supporters behind the crowd, as it seemed it was probably not going to be Villa’s night.

Ayew gives Villans hope, but it’s in vain thanks to Kane

But, football can change in a blink of an eye. It did so with just ten minutes to go, after Leandro Bacuna‘s stinging effort from range hit the post and ricocheted off the back of Lloris, Spurs failed to clear the ball convincingly enough, with Ayew profiting from a fortunate deflection to halve the deficit in dramatic style.

At two-one, the momentum was firmly in Villa’s favour and Tottenham could have easily seen their lead disintegrate. Instead, they were cautious and intelligent enough to slow the tempo of the game down, making the visitors chase the ball as time was ticking away.

The icing was sealed on the cake though, as a quick exchange of passes in the final third firmly put Villa to the sword, as they pushed men forward in search of a late equaliser. Eriksen evaded the challenge of Joleon Lescott on the counter before squaring the ball to his right to accomodate Lamela’s run, and Harry Kane’s sweetly-struck effort flew into the top corner to ensure they took all three points in an intriguing fixture.

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Focus: Otámendi’s impressive display against Norwich

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Focus: Otámendi's impressive display against Norwich

After sealing his summer switch to Eastlands, Nicolas Otámendi has settled into life in Manchester well – and his display on Saturday afternoon just reiterates that.

Even though the Citizens came out on top, they certainly would have wanted a clean sheet to show for their hard work over the 90 minutes at the Ethiad on Saturday afternoon.

Alas, they were unable to keep a clean sheet – due to a rare but equally frustrating error by Joe Hart, who dropped a swerving cross straight into the path of Cameron Jerome, who couldn’t believe his luck from a few yards out.

Otámendi shone in an otherwise average display

Admittedly, the overall performance was not superb. But, Nicolas Otámendi, was excellent. Not only did he score his first goal for his new employers, following his big-money switch in the summer, but defensively, he was very solid too.

A towering header near the penalty spot arrowed into the corner of the net, and despite John Ruddy‘s dive – this proved needless, as the agile Argentinian wheeled away to celebrate his second-half opener with the Ethiad faithful.

After a sharp start, he’s settled in nicely

Having been thrown into the deep end – literally – with his debut coming in a cameo appearance against Juventus, he was partly at fault for Álvaro Morata‘s winner with less than ten minutes to play. Being pulled out of position, the ball was popped through him and within a flash, the Spaniard curled his effort into the corner of the net.

Since then though, Otámendi has taken to life in England relatively well. It’s never easy, settling into a new country, not least as a defender, where you have to form a defensive partnership with teammates that may not even speak the same language either.

Still learning English, he doesn’t speak much of it, but he hasn’t need to use it. Doing his talking on the pitch (no pun intended here), his plethora of interceptions and smart challenges have helped the sky Blues to avoid some rather compromising situations, especially on the counter attack when he might have been the last defender too.

Gives Pellegrini a pleasing selection headache

A real aerial presence, he highlighted his use from set-pieces with a well-taken finish, but was defensively alert when called upon too. He looks established and relatively calm at the back alongside Vincent Kompany – which allows Manuel Pellegrini a selection headache for his centre-back pairing in each game.

Does he go for the skipper and Otámendi? Or Kompany and Eliaquim Mangala? The latter option may seem slightly erratic, but both are refreshing options to pick in a defensive manner for City.

His display against local rivals Manchester United, more of the same. Powerful, clean but efficient too, it’s certainly a joy for City supporters to see – given their backline has been critically analysed as the weakest part of their team… his presence certainly strengthens it.

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Patrick Bamford: What’s going wrong?

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Patrick Bamford: What's going wrong?

Having scored 19 goals and helping fire Middlesbrough to the play-off’s last term, the 22-year-old is facing a tricky predicament in south London – on loan from struggling Premier League champions Chelsea.

Just a few months ago, Patrick Bamford was the talk of the town. Having flourished in the Championship with Middlesbrough, his presence was important in helping push Aitor Karanka‘s side into the play-off’s.

Admittedly, Boro cruelly fell at the last hurdle in the final at Wembley, but they’ll be strong favourites to eventually secure their place amongst the top sides in England this term – and they’ll be collectively stronger for the experience.

A talented youngster on-show

After impressing for Nottingham Forest in the FA Youth Cup, Chelsea were excited by the then-teenager, and didn’t hesitate to snap him up into their own ranks. So in 2012, for £1.5million pounds, Bamford was officially a Chelsea player. Signing a five-year contract, he initially started well within the reserve setup, before earning a loan spell to various clubs in search of competitive football.

The idea has always been, for the most part, to give young players the adequate experience they need to return to their parent clubs with the hunger and ability to establish first-team credentials. In a star-studded team such as Chelsea’s, you have to be immensely talented for even scouts, staff and respective coaches to look at you, let alone being able to sign professional terms.

Last term was Bamford’s best…

The 2014/15 campaign was a breakout season for Bamford in terms of his overall development. He still doesn’t look the finished article yet, but the signs of progression were there: agility, strength, intelligent movement in-behind defences, flashes of flair as well as most importantly, the goals to show for it.

So you could excuse Patrick’s probable reaction to the news that José Mourinho had signed Radamel Falcao on a season-long loan deal from AS Monaco. Injuries have seen the Colombian forward’s confidence drop, and his performances have suffered for it.

After a forgettable season at Louis van Gaal‘s transitional Manchester United side, Mourinho vowed to try and help Falcao restore his world-class ability, which was infamously quiet for large parts of the previous season.

…But now he’s not getting many chances

Bamford was consequently loaned out to fellow Premier League side Crystal Palace, in east London. Upon the surface, this deal didn’t look like a particularly bad decision given the circumstances – but at the same time, just a few months into it, the cracks are gradually starting to appear.

With plenty of viable attacking options at Alan Pardew‘s disposal, you’d be naïve to expect Bamford would be consistently starting just on merit from his success at the Riverside. Potentially three or four forwards ahead of him in the pecking order, he would have been told, it wouldn’t be easy.

It hasn’t been. So far this term, Bamford has been restricted to a mere 56 minutes of Premier League football. Regularly being named in the matchday squad, he can rarely seem to get his opportunity off the substitutes’ bench, and it’s understandably hurting his confidence too.

“It has been a frustrating time for me – I am not the same person when I am not playing football all the time. I would say this has been one of the most upsetting times since I have been playing football.”

Chelsea are struggling, Patrick is too

Seeing his parent club Chelsea, struggling quite remarkably, will feel bittersweet for Bamford. On the one hand, he’ll feel frustrated that he has not been given his chance centre-stage yet, but also, he’ll take positives from the fact that when he does eventually return from his spell, he’ll get his opportunity.

After all, their options are looking increasingly bare at the moment. The talented attacking trio of Dominic Solanke, Isaiah Brown and Islam Feruz are all out on respective loan spells elsewhere away from Stamford Bridge – but they are expected to lead the club in the not-too-distant future.

That’s not to mention the likes of Tammy Abraham, Charly Musonda and Iké Ugbo, who are all showing signs of individual brilliance to suggest they’re all gems in a never-ending production line in west London.

If you see the direction I’m heading towards, you’ll recognise the aforementioned six players are relatively young, even in comparison to Bamford. The oldest, is 19. Bamford turned 22 back in September. The point is, he needs to be patient and keep working hard but also be quietly weary of the competition he has to battle with for a starting berth in the future.

“I have been doing all I can to get in the team and, hopefully, with the work I have been doing over the last few weeks I might get a few more chances.”

As Tim Notke once said, hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard.

Quotes’ via the Evening Standard

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Petr Čech’s importance to Arsenal is understated

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When rumours surfaced regarding Petr Čech’s impending departure from Chelsea it was unsurprising, and genuinely sad.

The manner was unfortunate given the circumstances, especially because a player of his quality should be playing week in, week out.

But with the emergence of Thibaut Courtois as one of the world’s best goalkeepers, being ten years his junior, Petr was always eventually going to be displaced in the pecking order as first-choice in west London.

Not particularly because his performance level dipped: he remained consistent and professional, even staying a year after he admitted considering leaving the club. But, ultimately, he needed to be playing regular football at a competitive level and Chelsea could no longer guarantee him that.

When he was linked with Arsenal, I was surprised. Not only because he’s such a good goalkeeper, but also given the fact that the two clubs are such fierce rivals.

Naturally, a player of his stature and thanks to the legacy he’s created for himself at Stamford Bridge, it was fitting that he was able to dictate where he wanted to go.

A respectful, but also a costly decision made on Chelsea’s behalf at the end of the campaign. Refusing to believe the media hype until he’d been pictured with the shirt and a beaming smile, it actually started to settle into my mind that he was an Arsenal player during the pre-season tour of Asia.

Even though the fixtures were not competitive, you could tell he was already oozing confidence out of a side heavily criticised for their struggles defensively over the past few years.

You could also argue that we’ve not had a world-class goalkeeper since the legendary figure of Jens Lehmann departed in 2008. Manuel Almunia, Vito Mannone, Lukasz Fabianski and David Ospina have all tried to stake their claim for the number one jersey on a permanent basis but to no avail.

The closest to doing so, has been Wojciech Szczesny. The 25-year-old is currently on-loan at Serie A side Roma, and even though he is undoubtedly a good goalkeeper, he has a frustrating tendency to make mistakes, that he really shouldn’t be making if he’s to justify his inclusion in the team every week.

Errors in judgment and momentarily lapses in concentration have clouded fans and critics opinions on him. At 25 he’s still maturing as a goalkeeper, but time will tell if the club can reap the rewards.

Čech, meanwhile, is the complete package. At 33, he’s still got a few years left to perform at the highest level – considering a goalkeeper’s career span is much wider than an outfield player on average.

As well as that, he has much more experience, not least in big pressure situations too. Having made over 100 appearances in European competition for the Blues – Europa League and Champions League combined – over his ten-year spell there, he’s proven his quality on a number of occasions.

What I also find ironic, is the fact that seemingly everyone in the media was quick to launch a scathing attack on him after his League debut for the club. Admittedly, it was a forgettable way to kickstart your tenure at a new club but even so, they are more reluctant to report when he does well.

John Terry’s comments back in June, have already been proven correct. He said, matter-of-factly, that his presence alone within the squad will win Arsenal fifteen points a season.

Twelve competitive games later, he’s arguably already won the side eight points.

First, his excellent display against Liverpool. Leaving plenty of players in awe he made a series of important stops, especially in the first-half, to help his side when they needed it most during a relentless wave of counter-attacks. If not for him, they’d have certainly lost the match, but came away with a hard-fought point.

Then, he played a part in the enthralling 5-2 away victory over Leicester. Although neither of their goals were his fault, at 4-1 up, Claudio Ranieri’s men went on the charge in search of a way back into the match.

They grabbed one goal, but it could have easily been two or three more. Čech remained confident and commanded his area well, especially to keep out Riyad Mahrez and stop Jamie Vardy netting a hat-trick with his quick reactions and smart saves allowing the momentum to shift back into Arsenal’s favour.

In the build-up to the clash against Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich, plenty of headlines and stories were revolving around one man: Robert Lewandowski. The Polish forward has been enjoying some red-hot form of late, but even he was unable to break down Arsenal’s defence – because of Čech.

Constantly alert and aware, he was able to thwart Bayern’s best efforts, and his experience was crucial in helping the Gunners secure all three points along with a well-earned clean sheet.

Last but not least, a tough fixture against Everton. Arsenal, who love to give themselves unneeded pressure, could and probably should have sealed the victory over Roberto Martinez’ men with time to spare. But with the scoreline staying the same throughout the second-half, it allowed the visitors hope that they could actually snatch something from the match itself.

They nearly did. Lukaku’s headed effort kissed the crossbar, Barkley came close, but Gerard Deulofeu’s one-on-one opportunity should have levelled proceedings.

Čech, making himself big and closing down the angles for Deulofeu to strike, dived quickly to his left to parry away the Spaniard’s effort, which was in-line with the penalty spot and relatively close towards goal.

If Szczesny was in the same position, I wouldn’t be as confident that he’d have made the save. It’s saves like these which just reiterate how good Čech is, and how his arrival has helped improve the team.

Plenty of people have criticised Arsène Wenger for not signing any outfield players in the summer but, if he continues to make one world-class acquisition like Petr every window, I highly doubt anyone will be complaining for long.

Similar to Mesut Özil, Čech goes about his business quietly but with efficiency too. Refreshing to see, it’s no wonder Arsenal have improved defensively when they have such a towering presence as their last line of defence.