WHY RAYAN CHERKI DESERVES TO START MANCHESTER CITY’S MUST-WIN REAL MADRID REMATCH
Rayan Cherki’s creative cameo wasn't enough to save City’s title hopes as focus shifts to the Real Madrid UCL clash.
Pep Guardiola, as always, has shown he’s willing to face criticism head-on, especially when it comes to his tactical choices. After Manchester City’s recent draw at the London Stadium, all eyes turned to his handling of Rayan Cherki. The young substitute’s influence on the game starkly contrasted with the lacklustre performance of the starting lineup.
That draw against West Ham was a blow to City’s title hopes, putting them nine points behind the league leaders. Guardiola decided to deploy Antoine Semenyo and Omar Marmoush on the wings to support Erling Haaland, but that front three failed to break down a stubborn West Ham defence. The game’s momentum shifted in the second half when Cherki came on alongside other subs like Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku. Cherki’s creativity and close ball control started to open up opportunities that hadn’t been there in the first hour, although City still couldn’t find the winner.
In the post-match analysis, Guardiola didn’t shy away from owning up to his decisions. He called his starting lineup a “bad selection” and openly accepted the criticism. He explained that the problem partly comes down to balance: earlier in the season, playing Erling Haaland alongside players like Doku or Cherki made the team feel unsteady, lacking the Premier League stability required.
Still, despite the dropped points, Guardiola remains hopeful. He sees City as a team developing, one that has grown quite a bit but is still a work in progress. He defended starting Semenyo, recognising the stability brought by players like him and Nico O’Reilly on the wings. At the same time, he praised Cherki’s unique impact, especially when coming off the bench late in games, even if the young player doesn’t always have the pace.
As the Premier League frustrations settle, City’s focus now shifts quickly to their upcoming Champions League showdown with Real Madrid. Facing a 3-0 aggregate deficit, this midweek tie promises to be a stern test, demanding all the tactical acumen Guardiola can muster.
PEP GUARDIOLA FACES SQUAD SELECTION BACKLASH AFTER SUBS DELAYED UNTIL 80TH MINUTE
Pep Guardiola sticks to his wingless system despite pressure, while Erling Haaland struggles with clinical finishing late on.
No matter how close Pep Guardiola might be to the end of his tenure, he’s still steadfastly sticking to his methods. This week, after spending a significant amount of time defending his team selections following that 3-0 loss to Real Madrid, he showed up against West Ham without wingers, yet Manchester City still played like the side we’ve known over the past decade.
Teams have started launching the ball high from kickoff, but City kept their composure, dominating possession. In the first 15 minutes, they completed a hundred passes before West Ham even hit double digits. It’s another Guardiola team with a clear identity, grinding its way through the title race. But the big question remains: will it be enough to outpace Arsenal?
If Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal has anything to say about it, probably not. Two late goals for the Gunners at home against Everton, coming as City were preparing for their own game, felt like a stark reminder of the uphill battle ahead. After faltering at the Bernabeu when they needed to be resolute, City simply couldn’t afford anything less than a win at the London Stadium, even if possession stats were on their side.
Bernardo Silva set the tone, opening the scoring just past the half-hour with a delicate chip that might not have been intended but was perfectly executed. Things seemed on track. Then, just three minutes later, sloppy defending invited a West Ham corner. Donnarumma misread the situation, and Mavropanos headed in to erase City’s advantage in an instant.
Defensive blunders have been a recurring problem. Last week’s mistake against Forest probably ended their Champions League hopes, and these issues aren’t going away anytime soon. It doesn’t matter what formation you’re playing if your defending and attacking aren’t sharp, a reality City faced in a tough fortnight that has jeopardised their aspirations across multiple competitions.
The city's prolonged pursuit of a quadruple had been impressive until March, but this recent dip is hard to explain and clearly trickles down from the top. For the second league match running, substitutions were lined up but then postponed this time, involving Reijnders and Foden, both told to keep warming up well past the hour mark.
By then, Doku and Cherki were already on, trying to spark a comeback. The team pressured possession with plenty of urgency, but didn’t trouble West Ham’s keeper Hermansen enough. Nuno Espirito Santo, sitting out that suspension, watched calmly from the stands, perhaps sensing the tension.
When Reijnders finally entered the fray, he made an immediate impact, forcing Hermansen to tip a free-kick onto the crossbar. The city's best chance fell to the man they counted on: Haaland. Frustrated, he watched a cross evade him just before Doku cut the ball back low, setting Haaland up for a shot.
But under pressure, the finish was hurried and off target. At this crucial stage of the season, both Haaland and City have come up short of their goals.
Pep will keep doing things his way, and there’s still time for silverware this season. However, prospects of clinching the Premier League or Champions League seem increasingly distant.
PEP GUARDIOLA ADMITS "IT’S DECIDED" TO STOP MANAGING AFTER MANCHESTER CITY
Pep Guardiola drops a retirement bombshell, confirming he will "stop" after Manchester City to focus on his health and life.
Pep Guardiola’s been dropping hints again that he might not just leave Manchester City soon but could actually walk away from football management altogether. Sure, his contract runs until 2027, but the talk just won’t die down. People keep saying he might pack his bags at the end of this season.
Every time he faces the press, he brushes it off. It doesn't matter; the city's already looking at who comes next. Since December, they’ve been making plans, and word is, they’ve even thought about bringing in his old assistant, Enzo Maresca, to take over if Pep steps down.
There’s also talk about him moving upstairs into some kind of executive role. After all, he’s done it all: Barcelona, Bayern, and now City. Maybe he’d rather shape things from behind the scenes.
Rumours keep swirling, especially now, as City gears up for that big Champions League showdown with Real Madrid. Pep’s latest comments just poured more fuel on the fire. When TNT Sports asked if he’d miss these huge matches after he retires, he didn’t exactly sound like someone planning to stick around forever.
He said, “Of course I’ll miss these games. I really love it here; I like coming back. People in Madrid probably don’t expect it, but I have a lot of respect for them; they’ve done so much for football.
“Yeah, I’ll miss it, but I’ll also miss going to Camp Nou; I’ll miss Bayern Munich. Hopefully, we get through, and I can go back there, and I’ll miss it when I stop. These nights are special.
“I’ll even miss Selhurst Park. I love it. The Premier League and these stadiums. I don’t know, I’ll miss the Champions League, but also places like Fulham, Crystal Palace, and Goodison Park; these grounds are a big reason why I love England and the Premier League. And the FA Cup! Playing against League One teams… I really like it! But one day, it’ll all be over, right?”
Pep’s already taken a break before; after Barcelona, he disappeared for a year before showing up at Bayern. Last summer, he was pretty open about what comes next. He basically said another break is coming once he leaves City.
He put it like this: “After this time with City, I’m going to stop. That’s for sure. It’s decided, more than decided.
“I don’t know for how long – maybe a year, maybe two, three, five, ten, fifteen; I have no idea. But I’ll stop when I leave City because I need to focus on myself, my body, you know…
'In Catalan, we say "badar".' Badar, badar, badar… I want to do that, just stop and watch the cows go by as the train passes. My grandfather used to say, ‘You look at me the way cows watch the train go by.’ That’s it. Sometimes you just need to stop and watch life go past.”
