Manchester City defeated Manchester United 3-0 at Etihad Stadium. Surprisingly, their best moments in the game happened when they didn’t dominate possession.
If there is one thing Pep Guardiola sees as a non-negotiable in football, is having possession. The Spanish mastermind wants his teams to be the ‘main characters’ and dictate how the games go 100% of the time.
This season, however, he’s been more flexible in this department. A big example was their 3-0 win over rivals Manchester United this Sunday, in which they did most of their damage without the ball.
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Let’s be clear though: City absolutely started the match having the ball for most of the time. This is still their default setting, so to speak.
But unlike in their loss at Brighton, in which they led at the break and upped their possession percentage in the second half, they decided to give the ball to Ruben Amorim’s side. And it paid off big time.
In this article, we’ll cover:
Man City gave away possession to their advantage
Of course it’s easier to ‘give up’ on possession when you’re ahead. And we can also imagine that it probably wouldn’t have been the case if the game was tied at half time.
But Man City’s performance – especially in the second half – was electric in an uncommon way. For starters, they had a much more vertical and direct approach than usual, even when they had the ball most of the time.
| Manchester City stats | 1st half | 2nd half |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 60% | 30% |
| Goals | 1 | 2 |
| Shots | 4 | 9 |
| Big chances | 0 | 4 |
| Expected goals | 0.34 | 2.18 |
City ended the game with 45% possession – their fourth lowest mark at home since Guardiola took over in 2016.
Other tactical unusual traits
Offering the ball to Manchester United wasn’t their only unusual characteristic on display at the Etihad.
The Citizens like to attack with a clear, symmetric and at times rigid structure. There are usually pre-determined roles and spots on the pitch for the players to occupy and this is how they dominated English football from 2017 until 2024.
Now though, they also seem more flexible with this. Each of the first two goals showed a lot of their players closer to each other than usual. Phil Foden acted as the left-centre-midfielder and Tijjani Reijnders as the right-centre-midfielder. Still, the Englishman attacked the box down the middle after cutting from the right while the Dutchman occupied the right half-space.
It was even more clear when looking at Bernardo Silva (right-midfielder) and Jeremy Doku (left-midfielder) also in the first goal. Both wingers in the same side is not a common sight for Guardiola-coached teams.
The second goal was a more circumstancial example due to the fact that the play started in a throw-in. But there was still a considerable number of players overloading the left corridor and then cutting in diagonally, where Erling Haaland doubled their lead.
There are still other traits of more traditional positional play, like the forwards in a horizontal line trying to spread the opposition and create gaps. But Guardiola used other players for that. Like left-back Nico O’Reilly filling in for Foden as a left-centre-midfielder in the attacking half.
Don’t play the game, play the opponent
Another component of City’s win is that Man United are an easy side to try this strategy against. Ruben Amorim relies heavily on over-the-top passes and through balls to get to the attacking half and establish his team there.
If you give them the ball and make them work patiently, chances are it’s going to be safe. The only other way the Red Devils can cause damage is by bombarding crosses into the box.
That did happen late on, which could be cause for concern. Eight of their 12 shots came after the 79th minute (67%). Bryan Mbeumo (0.58 xG) and Casemiro (0.47 xG) had the best chances, but both missed.
Erling Haaland’s all-around recital
Haaland had such a good game that his performance deserves a whole segment here. Not only did he score a brace with two classy finishes to give Altay Bayindir no chance, but he did everything else. Literally.
The Norwegian striker set Reijnders up for what could’ve (and should’ve) been the fourth goal with a beautiful pass. To top it all off, he nearly led the Citizens in clearances, with six – the same as Abdukodir Khusanov and one fewer than Ruben Dias.
Not even his 0.92 xG miss could take away from his monster afternoon. Incredible game from the number nine. Also, quick shout-outs to Doku for the two assists and Foden who looked lively, loose and confident.
Bernardo Silva was probably the weak link, despite picking up an assist. He was poor making decisions and also in execution. If a player like Savinho had received his opportunities to run, take defenders on and shoot in the first half, maybe the game would’ve been over at the break.
It’s still early and Man City had lost twice in a row before this win. Also, Man United haven’t been much of a test for anyone lately. But like their opening day win over Wolves, it was yet another example of this new mix of styles bearing fruit for the Citizens.