With ties like Gonduane, De Bruyne, Mahrez and Puden, and 17 different scorers this season, it's no wonder Manchester City do not need a striker • "The players are running faster, and closer to the pitch," explained Guardiola, who is perfecting his method from Barcelona • Tonight (22 : 00) They are in front of Mönchengladbach
City players are celebrating.
Everyone contributes their share
Photo:
IPI
"Agwarrrrrrrrrrrr".
This roar, and the text that comes after it, are what everyone remembers from that goal in the 93:20 minute against KPR - the goal that brought City its first Premier League championship in 2012 and changed the league map.
Less remembered are the players who surrounded the Argentine on that historic day.
Beyond Mario Balotelli, who replaced Carlos Tevez and signed on for cooking, there was also Edin Dzeko in the area, who in the 90th minute prepared the ground with the goal he set. 2: 2, that is, in that championship, less than a decade ago, City won when Its four strikers who together have contributed 54 goals out of 93 she has scored all season.
In numbers.58% -
City and then-coach Roberto Mancini did not invent anything.
Conquering strikers have always been a necessary commodity for the Premier League championship.
From Alan Shearer at Blackburn, Dwight York and Andy Cole at United, Thierry Henry at Arsenal and Didier Drogba at Chelsea to Jamie Vardy at Blaster City and Muhammad Salah at Liverpool.
City, too, in its additional championships, held an occupying striker who was its main goal provider.
With Pellegrini it was Aguaro and Dzeko, and in both championships under Pep Guardiola the Argentine striker was once again the leading conqueror, once receiving support from Gabriel Jesus and another time from Meraim Sterling.
And here this season Aguaro has yet to score, the Brazilian has just four and Sterling nine.
New idea and sleek execution
In the conquerors' table, there is not a single City player in the top five and the first to appear is Ilkay Gonduan, a contact with 11 goals, in eighth place.
Despite this, and perhaps because of it, City looks great.
So true, a goal-free game was already a goal.
Pep himself did it in Barcelona, the Spanish team played like that for a long time - and there still seems to be a novelty here.
City of the season, unlike for example Messi's Barça, does not have a central address.
The craft of conquest is the lot of everyone - not only the attacking players but also of Gonduane, Fuden and Mahraz (6 De Braina, 3 Stones and Bernardo Silva (2) and a few other players who scored one goal.
In total, 17 different conquerors in all settings.
There is a matter of constraints here, of course - Aguaro's injury, Jesus' lack of sharpness and lack of cash to buy a striker in January - but there is also an idea and execution here.
After all, Pep dislikes dependence on the striker.
He once called Tottenham "Harry Kane's team", and even if he said it casually - he clearly sees it as an insult.
In his vision, his team should be organic, coordinated, team-oriented and each player can fulfill several roles.
"When we play without a typical striker, the players need to run more and be closer to the field," Pep explained, which is exactly what City do.
City's lineup lately is a sort of classic 4: 3: 3 with Pep touches.
The defenders play as a real extreme, the back contact is often left alone in the center of the field and the other players in the front are allowed to move freely and change places.
Gonduane, De Bruyne, Mahrez, Bernardo and Phil Foden do it excellently, but Joao Canselo also plays a key role in this style of play.
The Portuguese starts as a defender, enters the link and adds another attacking option to City.
"We don't have a player who can pass everyone and score every game," Guardiola explained, "and since we don't have a player like that, we have to play as a team, and play well."
Tonight, in the last eight of the Champions League against Borussia Mönchengladbach, City will try to continue in the same way.
Although Aguaro has returned to practice but is not expected to play, Jesus is set to start the game on the bench, but it really does not matter.
This city does not need a striker, it just conquers a lot - as a team.
