Man City struck gold on “generational” star

A strange case from Manchester City. Last season, Pep Guardiola’s side won four Premier League titles in a row, and were just one year away from achieving an incredible treble.

But things went wrong. Guardiola is a complicated machine, and some of the cogs have fallen into place after so many years at the top. In a way, that was expected. That Manchester City have dominated as they have for so long has been a miracle in many ways.

Heading into the season, there has been a lot of uncertainty about City’s preparations for the new season, but there have been promising signs, and they sit in fifth place after seven games. Arsenal, at the top of the standings, maintains a three-point lead.

Arsenal are probably the most complete team in the Premier League, while Liverpool boast the most threatening front line, having broken the British transfer record twice this summer with Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.

When Man City missed Florian Wirtz

At the beginning of the summer, it looked as if the German was on his way to the Etihad. Reports suggested he was leaning toward a move to Manchester but the Nationals ended up pulling out of the deal.

In fact, other claims at the time indicated that they withdrew their benefits due to the “high costs” of the move. completely. Liverpool ended up signing him for £116m.

However, they are unlikely to be too bothered. City have the unstoppable Erling Haaland, while Wirtz continues to flounder, failing to score in the red of Liverpool so far.

By Haaland’s standards, it has been a slow start to the season. Nine goals from seven Premier League matches. How he must hang his head in shame.

The Norwegian has posted more than that twice at this early stage, but we split hairs, and this really underscores just how good of a goal scorer Haaland is.

At 25 years old, he is now a strong and intelligent player, combining physicality and innate shooting ability with movement and timing beyond all his positional peers.

If City regain their throne this season, there is no doubt that the unstoppable striker will be the main man.

Haaland is the Premier League’s most valuable player, according to CIES football Observatory, but he’s not the only compatriot with a hefty price tag.

In fact, Guardiola has another player in his ranks who already outperforms the two aforementioned Liverpool stars, Isak and Wirtz.

Manchester City wins gold with ‘generational talent’

Manchester City may have emerged from a valley, but behind them there were plenty of peaks. Among the standout stars of the Guardiola era is Phil Foden, who may have hit his stride again.

Foden graduated from City’s academy in 2016 and made 197 appearances for City, winning six Premier League titles and the Champions League among many other honours. The Independent’s Miguel Delaney praised him as a “generational talent”.

An exceptional talent on the ball and a predator in the final third, the attacking midfielder undoubtedly regressed last season, but he has been a talisman throughout an illustrious era for City, and ostensibly stands ahead of his prime years.

Only in January did the CIES Football Observatory clarify that the Three Lions star is among the most valuable in the world, with his worth £126m higher than Wirtz and slightly ahead of Isak.

Liverpool have received a lot of praise for their summer spending spree, and already look a force to be reckoned with in the long term, but with Haaland and Foden integrated into the final third under Pep’s wing, there is every chance City will be the team to beat again in short order.

This underscores the quality at Pep’s disposal, and if Foden can raise his game a little more over the coming months, he could produce a season in which Liverpool’s top hitters pale in comparison.

It remains to be seen whether Foden will achieve the same great heights he has achieved in previous seasons, but he is starting to gel again and has the ‘generational’ quality to make as big an impact as Haaland throughout the year.