Within the afterglow of an underwhelming however extraordinarily needed win over Membership Brugge of their final Champions League match, Pep Guardiola set the clock working. He acknowledged his Manchester Metropolis facet weren’t prepared for the check posed by Actual Madrid (or Bayern Munich) there after which. Nevertheless, he famous, quite a bit may change in two weeks.

Time is sort of up. And, nicely, treasured little has modified. In two video games the English champions have been totally mullered by Arsenal earlier than a a lot rotated facet wanted all of the cavalry the bench may muster to scrape previous League One Leyton Orient. Treasured little seems to have modified. The assault is ponderous, the midfield lacks dynamism and it requires little or no certainly to pry open a protection that’s lacking its Rodri-shaped protect.

Now Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe are coming to city, main a Actual Madrid facet who’ve their very own vulnerabilities in an injury-riddled backline. All that’s required is for Metropolis to provide you with a approach of getting their jabs in on the European champions’ weak torso, ideally whereas masking off their very own glass chin. Fortuitously for them they’ve a supervisor who will drive himself mad in pursuit of the right gameplan to quash Madrid. The stage appears set for a type of video games the place Guardiola tries one thing fully totally different, wildly experimental and/or probably disastrous. 

How would possibly Metropolis change to quell the specter of Madrid and heighten their very own? Lets say.

Actual Madrid vs. Atletico Madrid rating: Kylian Mbappe rescues level after Julian Alvarez’s chilly panenka penalty

Chuck Sales space

1. Use a correct defender at proper again

If there was a continuing via the numerous methods Metropolis have inflicted catastrophe on themselves this season, it has been the sieve with which they’ve tried to defend their very own proper flank. When Kyle Walker returned from damage he seemed to have misplaced half a yard of burst, however even that post-prime model of their erstwhile membership captain can be preferable to the choices at present at their disposal. He is now at AC Milan.

Rico Lewis was the subsequent man up when Walker left and the teen has his qualities, solid within the Guardiola sides that have been so totally dominant they by no means needed to fear a lot about defending. Lewis passes and carries the ball nicely, his motion is sharp and he has a robust sense of positioning when Metropolis are camped within the attacking third. Get him going backwards, nevertheless, and he seems like a 20-year-old defender who has spent most of his skilled profession probably not defending.

Lewis has evidently misplaced the belief of Guardiola as a beginning proper again within the greatest video games. It’s exhausting to know precisely what Matheus Nunes has accomplished to earn it. Membership Brugge’s purpose on the Etihad 12 days in the past might need been the obvious instance of a winger blowing by the Portugal worldwide, but it surely was hardly the one one. No marvel. No matter Nunes may be he’s not a proper again. A pure defender would have recognized that when Ferran Jutgla had him on the breakaway his finest guess was to delay in order that the three masking midfielders may get again and provides Metropolis the numbers. As a substitute, he dedicated to a deal with he by no means received near successful, Membership Brugge’s ahead was away and nobody was in a position to get throughout to Raphael Onyedika.

These kinds of moments have been the norm not the exception when Nunes is enjoying at proper again. Maybe it’s a operate of being a complicated midfielder for a Guardiola workforce that also pays lip service to their press. These gamers must be snapping at their opponents’ heels when they’re going through in direction of their very own purpose. Do this in opposition to a difficult winger like Leandro Trossard — significantly when Bernardo Silva seems so mild on muscle — and also you danger turning positions like this right into a free kick in a harmful space.

In a bid to take advantage of Nunes’ third man runs, Guardiola has typically utilised both a 2-3-5 or 3-2-5 in possession, his proper again pushed up in direction of that frontline the place he can maintain width and provides Phil Foden a channel to maneuver into. That’s one thing that may work if Metropolis have been at their handiest out of possession, suffocating the opposition with excessive strain. As a substitute even Leyton Orient gamers can move their approach round 4 black and yellow shirts and create a shot for themselves seconds later.

Now think about it’s Luka Modric slipping these passes up the sphere, Vinicius working onto them. The masking proper heart again is not going to have the ability to get throughout fast sufficient. There’s little worth, then, in leaving Nunes again. Lewis may not be the one both. John Stones or Manuel Akanji at proper again? Maybe, however they’d not have the legs to maintain up with Vinicius or Kylian Mbappe.

There’s one who may sustain with them. In Lens’ 2-0 win at Reims in November, Abdukodir Khursanov hit a high pace of twenty-two.67 mph. The quickest both Mbappe or Vinicius have hit within the Champions League this season? 22.18. The slight drawbacks? Khusanov didn’t actually play for granted again for his earlier membership, although masking the fitting facet of a again three may be one thing Tuesday requires. Nicely that and the truth that his debut in English soccer was as making an attempt as any younger footballer may want for. Talking after Khusanov’s error within the 3-1 win over Chelsea, Guardiola steered he would possibly take his 20 12 months outdated Uzbek defender out of the firing line for some time. Hurling him again in entrance of among the sport’s deadliest marksmen can be fairly the gambit.

2. Play via Haaland

From one thing that has not labored nicely for Metropolis to a extra profitable method, not less than in flashes. Evaluate and distinction Erling Haaland’s warmth map from the victory over Chelsea with that for his season as an entire. 

One of many purest penalty field gamers of his era was again in midfield, a mere 4 of 26 touches coming within the field. For the season over 30 p.c of Haaland’s touches have come within the field. Towards Chelsea that proportion was halved. Had this been efficiency not come from a 6′ 4″ Norwegian it would even have been labelled a false 9 show. Arguably, that’s what it was. Earlier than that time period got here to imply somebody who doesn’t seem like a No.9 main the road, a false 9 was somebody who dropped in direction of midfield to create area for different forwards to assault.

On this case Omar Marmoush was crashing into the area Haaland was creating. If his runs had been timed higher, objectives would absolutely have adopted. Equally a robust leap by Levi Colwill 17 seconds into that contest might need been what stopped Metropolis from getting an excellent earlier purpose, provided that Marmoush might be higher positioned to assert any flick on than Trevoh Chalobah.

Metropolis would possibly nicely have been making an attempt the identical factor in opposition to Arsenal final Sunday, it’s exhausting to make certain given how not often the lengthy passes they tried even got here near Haaland. Actually, nevertheless, Marmoush’s positioning even nearer to his No.9 steered Guardiola had seen one thing he appreciated in opposition to Chelsea.

Towards Madrid it would work even higher. Carlo Ancelotti won’t be able to discipline Antonio Rudiger, the type of strong heart again who can assert himself on Haaland aerially. David Alaba too, which means a possible heart again pairing of Aurelien Tchouameni and Raul Asensio with Federico Valverde dropping again to cowl the fitting flank. That’s a number of gamers inexperienced of their place with treasured little reps collectively. Such circumstances are likely to deliver with them a rickety line that leaves area within the unsuitable spots, whose offside line falters at simply the unsuitable second. A little bit of little-ish man enjoying off the massive lad up high ball would possibly go a great distance.

3. A recreation of maintain away

The danger, nevertheless, is available in Haaland not successful these flick ons, in a extra fast fireplace assault being repelled by Madrid in a lot the way in which it was by Arsenal. There’s a cause why Guardiola has by no means earned comparisons with Charles Reep or Sam Allardyce. The lengthy ball recreation may be probably the most direct path to purpose, however a recreation of second balls and duels it isn’t as simply managed as one the place Metropolis full 500-plus passes. Open up any contest to transitions and Mbappe, Vinicius, Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham would possibly simply rip via you.

“It is unimaginable to manage these 4 gamers for 90 or 180 minutes,” mentioned Guardiola. “All 4 are distinctive, we all know that. Now we have to scale back their involvement. They’ve talent, they mix nicely whatever the opponent. 

“However we’ll attempt to impose our recreation, be intelligent to get an excellent end result to take to the Bernabeu.”

These two ideas of management and imposition trace at Guardiola’s specific method to Champions League across the flip of the last decade, the defensive possession that took Metropolis to the ultimate in 2021. Within the three years previous to Haaland’s arrival there was no protection in Europe’s high competitors that was wherever close to as miserly as theirs, giving up a median of 0.72 non-penalty anticipated objectives per recreation. This was the workforce of 61 p.c possession, measured construct up and a packed center.

It may work once more. Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, Mateo Kovacic: all of them look to have misplaced slightly burst — in the event that they ever had one in some circumstances — however in opposition to a Madrid workforce that doesn’t actually chase them of their half of the pitch, they might simply manipulate the area like they used to. Add in a Jack Grealish to deliver a bit extra pausa to the midfield, hope that Nico Gonzalez’s presence in coaching on Monday means he can be match sufficient to characteristic, his muscularity approximating not less than one in all Rodri’s nice traits. Maybe, and that is the place we get actually radical, sacrifice Haaland in pursuit of management.

Covet the ball, assault solely when the protection is ready, unfold the attacking accountability: it has all labored for Metropolis earlier than. Whether or not it should work once more appears unknowable, about the one factor that may be recognized for sure on the Etihad proper now could be that what they’ve will not work in opposition to Madrid.