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Manchester City expert Steven McInerney from Esteemed Kompany believes that Pep Guardiola is ‘right and wrong’ when discussing what represents a successful 2024-25 season for the club.
After winning an unprecedented fourth consecutive Premier League title last season, Man City have been knocked off their perch at the summit of English football this term, with a combination of injuries and a notable drop-off in form from several first-team players contributing to what has been a turbulent campaign for Guardiola and co.
The Citizens, who currently sit fourth in the table, have officially relinquished their iron grip on the Premier League trophy and sit a whopping 21 points behind new champions Liverpool with four fixtures remaining.
Man City have failed to win 16 of their 34 Premier League games (D7 L9), scoring 30 goals fewer than last season (66 currently compared to 96) and conceding nine goals more (43 currently compared to 34).
Guardiola’s side also failed to reach the heights expected in the Champions League this season, scraping through the newly-formed 36-team League Phase in 22nd place (W3 D2 L3) before being comprehensively beaten by Real Madrid in the knockout playoff round.
In addition, Man City exited the EFL Cup at the last-16 stage, but there is still some hope for silverware as the Citizens will face Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final in May – their third successive Wembley appearance in the showpiece event of England’s most prestigious cup competition.
The FA Cup represents Man City’s only chance of major silverware this season, apart from the Community Shield, but Guardiola has insisted that a domestic cup triumph, and reaching next season’s Champions League with a top-five finish in the Premier League, will not be enough to mask an uncharacteristically difficult season.
Speaking after Man City’s 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup semi-finals last weekend, Guardiola told reporters: “No! The damage would be minimum. It’s not going to confuse [that] the season has been good. The club has to take the decision, the right ones, so next season will be better.
“We are a thousand million points behind Liverpool. I said many times the season has not been good because we define if the season is good or not with the Premier League.
“This season it could not happen, at the same time we tried to avoid the damage. We have to be calm now and recover.”
Is Pep right? Is Pep wrong? What represents success for Man City this season?
Sharing his thoughts on Guardiola’s comments and what represents a successful season for Man City, McInerney told Sports Mole: “It’s yes and no. He’s right and he’s wrong. It’s one of those things where it’s all relative to the expectations. If you compare it to the last four years, of course it’s a massive failure and it’s not good enough.
“City aren’t here just to scrape Champions League spots and maybe win a domestic trophy in terms of FA Cup or Carabao Cup, they’re there to win leagues. I don’t think Guardiola’s even bothered about not even winning the Premier League or winning the Champions League, it’s the manner of how we’ve not won it, how we’re miles behind.
“If you fall short in a Champions League race or Premier League race, it’s not the end of the world as long as you’re competing and I think that’s the point he’s trying to make.
Man City’s “flaw” is “most people’s ceilings”
“We can finish third and Guardiola could be happy if it was only four points (behind the top). We might somehow finish [as high as third] this season, but we’re still miles behind, so it’s irrelevant. It’s more about the context as opposed to the achievements.
“But, you’d be stupid not to take that (FA Cup glory and Champions League qualification). If in your down season you win a Community Shield against Man United… and then you win an FA Cup and also get Champions League football – and who knows how City will do in the Club World Cup – if that’s your flaw, that’s most people’s ceilings, so that’s a really, really good accomplishment.”
McInerney believes that a major benefit of Man City winning the FA Cup is having the likes of Nico O’Reilly, Matheus Nunes and January signing Omar Marmoush taste success and win silverware with the club for the first time as regular first-team players.
He added: “The most significant thing for me is more what it means going forward, because City rediscovering their identity after a horrid few months where it looked like the walls are caving in big time, and Guardiola was saying I’m not the guy who can fix this – he was saying that openly in press conferences.
“But once again, Guardiola has found that motivation towards the end of season to go on a winning streak, which is what Guardiola does. He always finds a way to get his team going again at the end of season.
O’Reilly, Nunes, Marmoush among those who will benefit from FA Cup glory
“It doesn’t rescue [the season] but it shows a lifeline. I think symbolically, it’d be really important to show that even when City are struggling, they are the standards. We still come away with silverware, we still end up at Wembley, we still get the bare minimum league position and we’re still a very serious threat.
“I reckon winning the FA Cup – and also the Community Shield – and getting Champions League football, if it’s your lowest, most people would kill for that.
“I also think as well it’s good that if we do get this trophy, it’s not just Pep’s trophy, it’s some of these players that are new. It’ll be Nico O’Reilly’s FA Cup, it’ll be Matheus Nunes’s – and I know he’s won trophies at City before, but he’s a starter right now for Manchester City – Nico O’Reilly’s a starter, [Omar] Marmoush, it’s their first taste of success at Manchester City as regulars.
“I think that symbolically is important as well, because it’s their motivation, it’s their sort of stamp of approval ahead of next season, so I think there’s many reasons why it’s a real nice reminder of the quality and it’s also a really good accomplishment.
“City are going to try and win something still and I think that’s quite telling about the standards that City have. I’ve already seen fans of other clubs going: ‘Oh this City side are going to win something, even when they’re having the worst season’. I think that does give you a fear factor, it does motivate you more, you get a taste of winning.”
McInerny continued: “There are a billion benefits from [winning the FA Cup] but Guardiola at the same time is right. It doesn’t make it a good season. It’s a good achievement, but it doesn’t change the fact that City have been miles off in the trophies that matter.”
Press play on the video at the top of this article to hear the full discussion.
