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Pep Guardiola. Alamy Stock Photo

'Can Pep Guardiola actually pull City out of this tailspin?'

Do Manchester City need to beat Liverpool to save their season at this early stage?

MANCHESTER CITY’S CHANCES of bouncing back from their terrible run of form was discussed by Gavin Cooney and Shane Keegan on this week’s episode of The Football Family, the podcast for subscribers  to The 42. 

“We have to ask the question; can Pep Guardiola actually pull city out of this tailspin?” Cooney asked.

“You would have to believe he can,” Keegan said.

“The problem is, is it going to be too little too late? If they’re beaten this weekend, that would take it to 11 points. Even this remarkably early, you wouldn’t just be relying on City to go on their traditional run from February onwards, but you would need Liverpool to fairly drastically slip up while they’re on that run too.

“It’s hard to put your finger on, but I would make the argument that if it was five lost games over 10 or 15 matches, I would be more worried for them. I genuinely think this is going to be a run of form that we look back at and just think ‘What the hell happened there?”

Cooney asked: “So you think this is just a weird short-term thing and in a few weeks, we’re going to see Man City go back to the team we know?”

Keegan said: “Yes, however with Rodri not there, I would rule out their ability to win the Champions League and maybe the biggest games. I think Liverpool will beat City at the weekend, and I think the likes of Arsenal and one or two other top teams are capable of beating them without Rodri around.

“But they shouldn’t need Rodri to beat 75% of the teams in the Premier League. I do think they’ll get back to the status quo of beating all those other teams. But without winning those big six pointers, I really can’t see how they make it back to the summit.”

“Normally I’d agree with you, but they’re just leaking so many goals,” Cooney said.

“Pep keeps saying how fragile they are. The goals that they’re giving away are crazy. It’s a little reminiscent of his first season when they were so susceptible to balls over the top. I remember Everton beat them 4-0 and Pep said something like ‘What are tackles? I don’t coach tackles.’ Maybe it’s time for him to start coaching them!

“Is this not the classic thing that happens with champion fighters in the ring? They just get old! Success keeps people together for longer than they should be together. 

“We won’t have the Kyle Walker debate again . . . But guys like Bernardo and Gundogan, these guys are looking so heavy legged all of a sudden,” Cooney said.

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