Premier League Weekly: Three defeats in a row... is Manchester City's bubble burst?

A dejected Gabriel Jesus of Manchester City in the Champions League defeat to Liverpool (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

MANCHESTER CITY’s title party is on hold after events in the Manchester derby.

And there is no European football after the Champions League exit to Liverpool.

As they go to Tottenham tomorrow night, PREMIER LEAGUE WEEKLY reflects on City’s miserable few days, as well as looks at a former City manager fighting to save his reputation.

Just a bad week or has City’s bubble been burst?

THERE is no doubt that Manchester City have not enjoyed the best of weeks. To lose the Manchester derby from 2-0 up at home to United when victory would have secured the title was a bitter pill to swallow. That was only exacerbated by Tuesday’s home defeat to Liverpool in the Champions League quarter-final, which put the seal on a 5-1 aggregate loss.

So Pep Guardiola has suffered three consecutive defeats and things might not get any easier as they visit Tottenham under the arch at Wembley tomorrow night. Lose a fourth game on the trot and people would start to ask questions about this City team.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola (Tim Goode/PA Wire)

A couple of months ago, they were still on for the quadruple and being hailed as one of the greatest teams ever in England. Now they are wounded. But the League Cup is already in the bag and it’s a matter of securing two wins from their final six matches to add the Premier League title. In virtually any other season, that would be an outstanding achievement and it’s what City managed in 2014 under Manuel Pellegrini’s guidance.

However, the chance to beat United to win the title was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity missed. Sealing it against Brighton or Huddersfield or when City are not playing will not quite feel the same, even if it still delivers the same prize. Then to lose in the Champions League to a domestic rival, trailing by 17 points in the league, is another tough one to take. That has been magnified by Liverpool drawing Roma in the semi-finals where they will be strong favourites to reach the Kiev final and with Bayern Munich and Real Madrid both showing signs of weakness, City will view this as an opportunity lost.

Pochettino laughs off Salah v Kane Golden Boot banter

City have not become a bad team overnight. The first half at Anfield was very poor and cost them the tie. Some of the football in the first half against United was outstanding and but from some lax finishing from Raheem Sterling, that game would have been all over, and the title done and dusted. Even on Tuesday night, if Leroy Sane’s effort just before half time after a positive 45 minutes had not been incorrectly disallowed for offside, things could have been very different if City had gone in 2-0 ahead.

The chat from the casual football observer is that City and Guardiola have been rumbled. They can’t defend. They don’t like it up ‘em and all that. The reality is that City play possession defending, in that they defend by keeping the ball and normally very close to the opponents’ goal. The difference is that United and Liverpool had the players to do damage when they got the ball off City. In Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli, Tottenham can do exactly the same and it would not be a surprise if they bloodied City’s nose as well. Yet, if these teams can beat City in a one-off game or over two legs, they should be asking what is lacking for them to be so far behind in the league.

Spurs and Man City clash this weekend (Justin Setterfield & Clive Rose/Getty Images)

The team from the blue half of Manchester should still go on and claim the Premier League crown and deservedly so. They have beaten every team in the league and that consistency merits winning the title. In Kevin De Bruyne, they have an outstanding candidate to be Footballer of the Year, with David Silva not far behind him. Claim four more wins and they will finish as the Premier League’s record points scorers. Similarly, 14 goals from the six remaining games will set a new record of 104 for the season. So these are targets that should be embraced over the final month.

Two trophies, record points and record goals. They would still be the hallmarks of an outstanding season and something that one bad week could not possibly erase.

https://www.sundaypost.com/sport/football/liverpool-boss-jurgen-klopp-confident-mohamed-salah-not-going-anywhere/

Can Hughes find the formula to keep Saints alive?

FOR football fans of a certain generation, Mark Hughes will always be fondly remembered as a warrior. Here was a striker who gave defenders a torrid time and scored spectacular goals. That legacy will never be tarnished.

Hughes has now been a Premier League manager for well over a decade and Southampton are now his sixth club in the division. He could certainly fall in that category of the ‘same old faces’, which has been well documented this season. But the stark reality is that these next five weeks could be his last at this level for a long time. That’s because he is staring at the ignominious outcome of managing two clubs who are relegated from the top flight in the same season.

The Welshman left Stoke in January with the club 18^th after a miserable run and try as he might, Paul Lambert has been unable to really improve things in the Potteries. After a couple of months to lick his wounds, Hughes returned to work at Southampton, with them also in a perilous position. They fell into the bottom three before he had been in charge for a league game but two matches so far have brought two defeats, including a crucial one at West Ham a fortnight ago.

Mark Hughes (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Hughes’ best work as a top flight boss was at Blackburn and in the early years at Stoke as a diligent manager, who was able to work calmly and carefully. He isn’t necessarily the ultimate fire fighter, who can come in and get an instant reaction but that is what Southampton desperately need.

Looking at the squad of players they have, the Saints are certainly not one of the worst three in the top flight. But after finishing at least eighth in the last four seasons, this has been a very bad campaign. In full-backs Cedric Soares and Ryan Bertrand and midfielder Mario Lemina, they possess players who would be coveted if they were relegated. However, they still have six games to sort themselves out, starting at home to Chelsea.

The league record shows just one victory in 2018 – away to West Brom – which is nothing to brag about. That must end quickly and they may need to win at least three more to remain a Premier League club. The trouble is that this year they have won four times as many FA Cup matches and face a semi-final with Chelsea next Sunday. Is that an unwanted distraction from the league form or is it keeping morale higher than in normal circumstances? Are three points against Antonio Conte’s side more important than beating them at Wembley in the cup? Or why can’t they do both?

So, it’s death or glory for Hughes, then in the coming weeks. He could emulate Lawrie McMenemy as a Southampton FA Cup winning-manager and claim his first silverware as a No.1 or he could be that unwanted quiz answer of the man who took two teams down.

Stat of the Day

0.975 – The average points per game during the first eight league games for Mark Hughes during his previous Premier League managerial posts. That return at Southampton would see them finish with 36 points and it would be touch-and-go if that was enough to finish outside the bottom three.