The 168th Manchester derby is looming on Sunday with pride at stake as well as a vital three points.
The
match has gained added importance for Manuel Pellegrini’s side which,
by their high standards, has slipped into slumber over the last three
games with two losses and a draw characterised by unimaginative, jaded
displays from their most important players.
A
2-0 defeat at the hands of Newcastle United to send them out of the
League Cup alone would have been enough to cast a shadow over
Pellegrini’s week, but it followed a lacklustre Premier League defeat at
West Ham and a stuttering Champions League stalemate with CSKA Moscow.
Manuel Pellegrini has plenty of issues to address if Manchester City are to recover their form this season
City's players trudge off dejected after their 2-0 home loss to Newcastle United in the Capital One Cup
City find themselves six points behind leaders Chelsea ahead of the weekend's Premier League action
Striker Edin Dzeko looks dejected after seeing City's defence of the Capital One Cup come to an early end
It
is fair to say Pellegrini is in the midst of the most trying week of
his Manchester City career so far, with City in danger of going out of
the Champions’ League and at risk of repeating their doomed title
defence of 2012-13.
He
must arrest the slide on Sunday if they are to keep Chelsea in their
sights. Here are five items in the Chilean’s in-tray at the moment.
The defence is still a cause for concern
Pellegrini
said the team had been working on its defence before the Newcastle
United game but there was scant evidence of that as Alan Pardew’s side,
largely without the world class talent of City, were allowed too much
time and space to make their breakthroughs.
Sam
Allardyce fired the warning shots at the weekend when he pinpointed
City new boy Eliaquim Mangala as one of the weaknesses his side
exploited last week.
Eliaquim Mangala was unable to stop Newcastle's Rolando Aarons scoring their opening goal on Wednesday
Pellegrini believes Mangala has been a scapegoat like Martin Demichelis (right) was last season
City line up to defend a Ryan Taylor free-kick during Wednesday night's match at the Etihad
The
23-year-old, bought for £32m in the summer, has failed to justify his
price tag so far but Pellegrini suggested he was being scapegoated in
the same way as Martin Demichelis was last year.
Pellegrini will hope Mangala can emulate the Argentine by turning his City career round in a similar fashion.
Injuries are in danger of derailing progress
Pellegrini’s
decision to field a strong starting XI in the League Cup, the
competition in which he won his first silverware in England, is
laudable.
But
the sight of playmaker David Silva limping off after five minutes, with
a derby four days away, suggested it had perhaps been ill advised. The
Spaniard is a vital cog in the City side and a game changing talent.
City suffered another blow when playmaker David Silva limped off after just five minutes
Silva's injury presents another headache for Pellegrini ahead of Sunday's clash with United
Pellegrini
might have been better off resting him in midweek, having played
against West Ham just four days previously. Pellegrini will receive news
about Silva’s knee injury on Thursday and will be hoping for a positive
report.
Yaya
Toure also exited lamely after an hour last night with a groin strain,
although Pellegrini said that was merely precautionary.
City are a team struggling for confidence
The
current run of results - draw-loss-loss - would not be viewed as a mini
crisis at most other clubs but this is is a side that has become
accustomed to victory.
They
have won just six of fifteen games in all competitions this season and
are now on a three-match winless run for the second time in a season
that is less than three months old.
Pellegrini
conceded that his players were low on confidence and suffering from a
‘lack of trust’. With the defence leaking goals and attacking players
not capitalising on chances, the confidence problem will only intensify
if they fail to get a result against United.
Sergio Aguero looks crest-fallen after referee Stuart Attwell shows him a yellow card
James Milner bellows instructions to his team-mates during the Newcastle game
Joe Hart fails to keep out Diafra Sakho's header in City's 2-1 loss at Manchester City last Saturday
The City defence react as CSKA Moscow are awarded a penalty in last week's Champions League tie
Just what has happened to Yaya Toure?
Last
season he was the driving force at the Etihad, dominating with his
trademark runs down the centre of the pitch and leading by example.
There
have been glimpses of his greatness this season, too, but he has been
largely ineffectual, lacking sharpness, being outmuscled by his
opponents and occasionally looking disinterested.
He has scored only one goal - an impressive strike against Aston Villa and even then he was poor for the rest of the game.
If he doesn't start improving soon he'll be lucky to get a birthday card, never mind a cake from Manchester City.
Yaya Toure grimaces as he leaves the field after an hour of the match with Newcastle
City are growing a reputation for being a lousy Cup team
Manchester
City have a proud and rich history in the Cups, with their first FA Cup
trophy dating back to 1904. They have had success recently, too,
winning the FA Cup in 2011, the Community Shield in 2012 and lifting the
League Cup earlier this year.
Pellegrini
clearly values them, too, consistently fielding strong teams. But for
some reason, they just can’t find their feet this season. Including the
Community Shield, they have one just one of six Cup games and that was
against Championship side Sheffield Wednesday.
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