Not many have the gift of being able to stop a Pep Guardiola team. The Spaniard’s Manchester City side have shown early signs of dominating the Premier League in the same way his Bayern Munich team did in Germany. A deep, balanced, talented squad enables Guardiola’s side to rotate players and play a similar brand of football that has given him such wonderful success throughout his career. Few squads in world football are blessed with the same quality that the Citizens have at their disposal and finding a way to suppress the many threats they possess is quite a challenge.
Certain types of managers have greater chance of success against Guardiola. Mauricio Pochettino and Brendan Rodgers are the most recent examples since Guardiola’s arrival in English football, but the tactical battles between Guardiola and Pochettino go back to their time in Spain. Managers who are willing to adapt for the opponent will always be a threat, although what Rodgers and Pochettino did of late was not a starkly different approach to their ‘normal’ set ups.
There is an obvious risk in the tactics they employed against City. Pressing high up the pitch leaves space behind the defence and can leave the team exposed should your opponent play a direct ball to bypass the first layer of pressing. Manchester City, however, struggled to do this against Tottenham in particular. When Claudio Bravo and John Stones would look to build attacks from the back and spray the ball into the feet of the wingers or David Silva, they faced a wave of pressing from the opposition forwards and the Spurs midfielders harassed their opposite numbers.
Guardiola’s possession game relies so heavily on being able to build attacks from the defence, the whole team is set up to play in that pattern. When you can force them away from this game they are not the same irresistible unit. In the absence of Kevin de Bruyne, Manchester City have been missing their best player to date, but his potential return this weekend could give Guardiola’s side a massive boost.
Everton have a squad with the talent to cause problems for City on Saturday, the greater concern is whether their players have the necessary application to carry out a tactic as bold as Tottenham’s before the international break.
Under the guidance of one of Europe’s best managers, Everton will likely employ a similar approach to that of Spurs. Ronald Koeman is an excellent tactician and his greatest challenge to pulling off an upset at the Etihad will be forcing his players to stick to the tactical requirements of the press and avoid allowing City that out-ball in behind.
It is vital they move the ball quickly once in possession and stay away from the sort of self-indulgent play that the Toffees can sometimes indulge in. Such an approach requires high energy levels and a devout commitment to the style of play as one player failing to seize on a pressing opportunity, or missing their trigger, can leave the whole side open.
