Sunday 10 May 2015 21:45, UK
Man City's class is clear but we've not seen enough of it this season, writes Adam Bate.
Manchester City versus Queens Park Rangers might have been an unlikely candidate for the Premier League’s most famous fixture but the events of three years ago ensure that the game will always stir emotions among the home support. The hero that day, Sergio Aguero, even came up with a display to remind fans that he remains as brilliant as ever as he fired a hat-trick in City’s 6-0 win on Sunday.
This was City at their sensational best with David Silva as conjurer-in-chief and the visitors helpless to resist. Even Wilfried Bony hinted at what he could offer next season with a delightful back-heel into Silva's path to seal an emphatic victory. “Sometimes you have to sit back and enjoy world-class football,” said former City striker Niall Quinn on co-commentary for Sky Sports.
Of course, the frustration for City supporters will be the sense that here was a team enjoying themselves as much as they have all season in the very first home game since Chelsea lifted the title – their title. It seems City boss Manuel Pellegrini is annoyed by the situation as much as anyone if his reaction to questions about how he can stop Chelsea’s dominance are anything to go by.
“I think Chelsea did this year exactly what we did last year,” said Pellegrini recently. “They won the Premier League and they won the Capital One Cup. We did exactly the same last year, scoring more goals in another style. We scored last year 158 goals and in this whole season 101 in the Premier League, 27 in the Capital One Cup.”
Given the speculation about the manager’s position, Pellegrini could perhaps be forgiven for launching a defence of his record. But it’s also revealing in that here was the coach looking back to the 2013/14 season in answering a question about how his team can approach the challenge of the 2015/16 campaign. It’s been a feature of City’s struggles, according to Gary Neville.
'Mentality problem'
“They have got a mentality problem, there is no doubt about that,” said the Sky Sports pundit recently. “This team cannot sustain success, and I think that is a terrible thing to have levelled at you. When you win championships you have got to be able to come back again with hunger and they do not. They drop off it. They get to the top of the mountain and drop off it.”
While Manchester United’s fall could be explained by the loss of an iconic coach and a host of big names, the confusion surrounding City’s inability to repeat their feats of the previous season is exacerbated by the fact that, in many respects, they remain the most devastating team in the Premier League. They’ve show it only in flashes this season but it was evident against QPR on Sunday.
Their six-goal win was the sixth time this season in which City have scored four or more in a game. By comparison, Chelsea have done it only three times and not since their January win over Swansea, despite being unbeaten in that time. City have done it three times since February but also lost four games in that same period. It all adds to the growing feeling this City side became a fair-weather outfit in 2014/15.
Ageing squad
Bully boys when the mood takes them and the going is good, their sheer quality has overwhelmed many this season. But they have been unable to cope with the relentlessness of the Premier League and struggled in the biggest matches. There has been much talk about City still learning in Europe but the reality is surely that the journey for this team – the oldest squad and average starting line-up in the country – is coming to an end.
There are some weeds in the garden and you've got to get them out of the changing room pretty quick. You cannot carry passengers.
“Time is a great teacher but unfortunately it kills all its pupils,” said the French composer Hector Berlioz and it illustrates the problem facing Manchester City. For much of this ageing group, talking in terms of getting to grips with Europe and ‘going again’ has ceased to be relevant. That opportunity has been and gone and there are big decisions to be made.
“It's a crossroads for them now,” said Neville last month. “There will definitely going be change at City, whether it's players, the manager, people above. Certainly some players. There are some weeds in the garden and you've got to get them out of the changing room pretty quick. You cannot carry passengers.”
It appears Yaya Toure, who turns 32 on Wednesday, will be among those moving on with quotes from the player’s agent indicating that his City career is coming to an end. Energy will be needed in defensive areas too but Sunday at least showed that in the 26-year-old Aguero, City have a striker around whom future success can be built.
“He’s such an important part of this club’s journey for the next few years,” said Quinn of the Premier League’s top scorer. Perhaps that’s why Pellegrini believes that journey is still on track. “I don't think we need a revolution,” he said afterwards. “Last year we won two titles. I never can accept that this team is failing, because I don't think it is easy to win the title in the Premier League.”
Sunday gave another glimpse of the talent that is there to work with. The quality is obvious but the mentality must be tweaked once again. So perhaps there is comfort for City supporters in looking to the past, after all. On the last two occasions they didn’t begin the campaign as champions, they ended it with the title. There’s enough evidence to suggest they could yet to do it again.
