Nine points and a game behind current leaders Chelsea means that City can only collect twelve points more than Chelsea have now. That means from their remaining eight games, Chelsea have to lose at least half, and I just don’t see that happening. Now, as a City fan myself, the side looked tired and not interested last night and might need some tough decisions over the summer.
City boss Manuel Pellegrini was full of excuses at the end of the game last night and yes the first goal could be argued as offside on two separate occasions and yes Manchester City should have had a penalty for handball in the second half but those arguments distract from the fact that the side just didn’t perform.
Palace caught the City back line flat footed within the first minutes of the first half and were unlucky not to take the lead earlier. Vincent Kompany could easily have been sent off for putting his hands on the referee after the opening Palace goal, but he wasn’t.
The real reason City have struggled this season, as highlighted last night, is much more worrying than ‘bad referees’. The City build up is too slow and allows the opposing side to get back in position. Jesus Navas has speed, Yaya Toure is reported as being unstoppable going forward and yet only a handful of times did City ‘break quickly’. The one time, a route one hoof up the field by Joe Hart almost resulted in a goal for Aguero or David Silva. If you are going to go wide and cross it in then Edin Dzeko becomes a target man, but all his chances were to feet.
Only when James Milner and first Samir Nasri came on did crosses come in, but by then Dzeko had been taken off and 5ft 8inch Sergio Aguero the target. Wilfried Bony was injured and therefore not available but even if he was I do not think he would have made a difference, I just don’t think his City career will amount to much. Alvero Negredo, currently on loan to Valencia was just the sort of attacker needed alongside Aguero last night. He has a much better work ethic than Dzeko and will put his body on the line to get on the end of that ball.
Decisions over the last season or two have been strange to say the least from Pellegrini. Letting a good Micah Richards go on loan while bringing in an aging Bacary Sagna was strange. I understand Micah didn’t play enough the previous season, but that too was just crazy decision also, but he got away with it because City won two trophies.
So where should City go from here? I think Pellegrini will be let go at the end of the season no matter what happens in the run in, just partly because of his transfer record. Players coming in who do not play, others loaned out after a season at the club and the list goes on.
So what would I do if I were the manager of Manchester City? Well some tough decisions have to be made that is for sure and I think two of the biggest decisions have to be selling Edin Dzeko and Yaya Toure. Dzeko, I have already said, just doesn’t work hard enough on away days at Palace for me and is just plain frustrating. Yaya Toure might be a more difficult pill to swallow but last night, despite the goal, he just looked like he was playing for team Yaya. Running with the ball only to lose it in midfield more times than I could count and swinging shots high and wide, both happening when passes were on.
A lot has been made of City being an aging squad but remember Frank Lampard is off to New York and third choice keeper, Richard Wright will turn 38 later this year. If a player is going to get exposure with the first team then why not bring an EDS youngster up who might actually learn something, rather than a retiree? I would keep Caballero if he was okay with having to fight with Hart for the number one spot and those would be my three goalkeepers.
In defense I would like to see Micah come back into the fold and compete with Pablo Zabaletta. Although it might be tough and might have to sell on Sagna for a loss I think it would benefit City in the longer term. Keep Milner, Silva, Navas and Nasri while hoping Negredo comes back. That, along with a decent signing or two and I think City are not in as bad a shape as it currently seems.
Don't forget, next up is the Manchester derby and in the last seven games City have won six and they always find that win when they really need it. So Manchester City: A Team In Decline? I don't think so. Look at the picture I selected for this piece, less than twenty minutes after that picture City were Champions, and they will be again.
Jason is a Freelance Soccer Writer. You can follow him on Twitter @PACityboy and www.facebook.com/jasonbardwell1979
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