Manchester City are four wins away from greatness and Sunday’s victory over Everton showed exactly why they are so close to what would be an incredible treble.
People often talk casually about how a team has a winning mentality without properly looking at the details behind it, but everything City did at Goodison Park was the perfect example of what their level of success entails.
I was quite surprised ahead of the Everton game when I saw that Pep Guardiola had left with three of the four defenders who faced Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final on Wednesday – the only change was Aymeric Laporte for John Stones.
I think it was out of respect for the threat posed by Everton after their recent performances, but also a sign that Guardiola has complete confidence in the players he has chosen – not just in their physical condition, but also in their condition. of mind – in the midst of an extremely pivotal week of their season.
No Razzmatazz, no problem
One of the hardest things in football is to play a really big game and then go straight into a game that on paper is much less of an event.
City did it when they went from playing away at the Bernabeu, in a monumental match between two of the world’s best teams that was watched all over the planet, to a Sunday afternoon at Goodison Park against a team fighting against relegation.
For starters, Goodison just doesn’t have the same razzmatazz, but more importantly there was also the risk that, given Everton’s position in the league, some City players thought they might just submit and win easily.
This complacency didn’t happen because of the team’s professionalism, each of them doing their part defensively when it mattered, and at the heart of it all was a rock-solid full-back.
So when I talk about a player’s winning mentality, I’m talking about Manuel Akanji giving Alex Iwobi the same respect he gave Rodrygo, and Kyle Walker treating Dwight McNeil like he’s as good as Vinicius Junior. .
It was the same with the attitude of attackers Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden, left on the bench against Real and then returned on Sunday.
They didn’t sulk or look frustrated at missing the big game, instead they knew they had a job to do and did every part of it – which included Foden coming back in the second half to earn a header important defensive back.
This is the mindset you need to win trophies. You also need the ability to win games, of course – through creativity and goals – but you also need the mindset and the physicality to go the distance on so many fronts each season, like City does.
Most of their players went to the World Cup before Christmas, but they all look so strong and, in terms of fitness, it’s like they hit their peak at exactly the right time.
After watching them on Sunday, I think they all deserve credit. There are so many individuals in the City squad that you could praise, but it’s the collective that put them in this position, and it’s also what earned them the points against Everton.
The Premier League, and a fifth title in six seasons, is almost over. One more win against Chelsea, Brighton or Brentford will finish the job, so now it’s just about what else City will win – and who can stop them.
It will take one hell of a performance from Real to end their Treble hopes at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday and the same goes for the FA Cup final against Manchester United.
These teams not only have to find a way to stop City, they also have to try to score against them.
* If they overtake Real Madrid. The score after the first leg of their semi-final is 1-1.
City’s best defense under Guardiola?
City are renowned for being amazing to watch, brilliantly creative and scoring lots of goals, but I don’t think they always get enough credit for their ability to keep the opposition at bay.
Especially over the past few months, they’ve been really solid and stable no matter who’s been in their backline. They have won their last 11 league games conceding just seven goals and I would go so far as to say they are as good defensively now as I have seen since Guardiola arrived at the Etihad Stadium in 2016.
I remember at the start of the 2019-20 season when Laporte was injured and City only had two senior centre-halves in John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi, a couple that Pep clearly didn’t trust. Vincent Kompany had left that summer and had not been replaced and Fernandinho had to replace at the back.
Now there is huge competition for places and a lot of room for variation on their back line, but changing positions or trying different combinations doesn’t seem to matter.
When Joao Cancelo went on loan to Bayern Munich in January I wondered who would play at left-back, but Nathan Ake and now Akanji have both been brilliant there.
I would say both of these players are playing the best football of their careers, and it certainly helps that most City defenders do the same.
John Stones looks happier than he has ever been at City, whether as a right-back entering midfield or midfield, and even Kyle Walker seems to have stepped up a level at the age of 32. He just looks unbeatable, defensively, and is at the top of his game.
I remember being impressed with Akanji when he played for Switzerland in the European Championship, but it was someone else who improved. It’s his first season in the Premier League but you’d never know – he’s confident and classy on the ball and, physically, great off it.
The only one of their regular defenders who I wouldn’t say has improved is Ruben Dias, but that’s only because he’s been so good for so long.
Ake has forged a great partnership with Jack Grealish on the left flank and although Laporte hasn’t played as much as he probably would like, he has shown against Everton that he can easily re-enter the squad when needed.
Reliable Rodri is the best in the world
City not only have a fantastic defence, they have the best midfield in the world sitting up front.
That’s how good I think Rodri has been this season – I haven’t seen anyone better – so it helps that he’s been so durable and reliable week after week. He simply doesn’t miss any matches.
The Spain international has been at City since 2019 and the fewest games he has played in a single season is 46, in 2021-22. He has already played 51 times in this campaign.
Rodri had just turned 23 when he joined Atletico Madrid and he has become a phenomenal footballer.
When he first joined the team, he was more pragmatic in his thinking when he had the ball and focused on the defensive side of his job.
Now he is much more productive in possession, appears with practical goals and always wants the ball in what seem to be really dangerous positions.
But defensively, he’s still absolutely brilliant at spotting danger and on top of that, he’s also a real physical presence from set pieces.
He’s going to be massive for City against Madrid and, the way he plays, it’ll be the same story in the Champions League final against one of the Milanese clubs.
Danny Murphy was talking to BBC Sport’s Chris Bevan.
