Friday’s Media Watch brings a nod to the past and a look to the future as Champions City look to continue the record Premier League run at West Ham on Sunday.
There’s plenty of analysis doing the rounds to try and discover just how boss Pep Guardiola has achieved his success, plus team line-up predictions for the London Stadium match.
First to Brighton player and Guardian columnist Liam Rosenior, who has taken a look at the role of full-backs in City’s season and taken the long view all the way back to 1970.
He writes: “A major component of Manchester City’s dominance this season has been Pep Guardiola’s positional use of his full-backs in the half-space in order to overload the middle of the pitch and overwhelm teams both in possession and in transition.
“Without the outstanding play of Kyle Walker and the development of Fabian Delph on a technical and tactical level, there is no way City would be the force they are.
Watch: The best goals, assists, moments of City’s season so far in our goal explorer
“If Guardiola did not value the importance of the position, moreover, he would not set his team up in the way that he does, spend the money he has on full-backs, and set such high physical, technical and tactical demands for them.
“My favourite goal growing up was Carlos Alberto’s for Brazil in their 1970 World Cup final triumph over Italy in Mexico. I would rewind on my VHS to watch the passing and interplay leading up to the goal and Pelé’s perfectly weighted pass for Carlos Alberto to drive forward on the overlap and smash the ball into the far corner of the net.”
