Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has shared his opinion on Manchester City’s 18-match winning streak.
“We all know that Guardiola’s teams rely on possession, but his greatest success came when he had a good defensive performance,” said Neville on his podcast.
“In my opinion, Man City’s weakness last year was that when controlling the ball high up the pitch, they made it too easy for opponents to pass their defense.”
“Now I would use the word “stranglehold” because the edge defenders come on the pressure, Cancelo shifts to the centre, Zinchenko shifts to the centre, plus there is Fernandinho, a five-man block is formed – two at the back, three at the front.”
“They act so aggressively, so coherent and compact both with and without the ball. It is fantastic to watch. Everything is very methodical.”
“With Arsenal, it was almost effortless for Man City. I had associations with Floyd Mayweather, as if City had won the previous three rounds, taken the lead and then just threw jabs in the remaining nine rounds.”
“Being able to do something like that is a special quality. I remember when we played away in the EPL, we often won 1-0, and then we got there thanks to an onslaught in the last 10 minutes.”
“But Pep Guardiola’s team is capable of winning without pressure. That’s a really special quality, and to play bravely in defence is fantastic.”
