It’s the question we’ve all been asking on and off for a decade now – can anyone stop Manchester City’s dominance?
They’ve got the most money, the best players, the top coach in the game, and the best suits upstairs running things. It’s been a well oiled winning machine – but there’s finally a sense that things could be coming apart a little.
First up, there are the charges from the Premier League hanging over them. It looks unlikely that they will be punished in terms of losing points or having titles stripped from them, but it could spell the end of a cycle.
Pep Guardiola has signed a new contract, but that doesn’t stop him walking away if he wants to; there’s a new sporting director coming in; key players like Kevin de Bruyne are out of contract and plenty of others are getting into their 30s.
Winning takes it’s toll on you mentally too, and what’s been incredible about this team so far is how Guardiola has been able to keep them motivated despite their endless success. Some suspect there now a sense that he’s run out of ways to get this group to play at 100% after so many years and so many trophies.
Despite all that, and despite how good and methodical Liverpool look under Arne Slot, you’d be a fool to write off Man City at any stage. You can read more here, but the long and short of it is that they’ll still be favourites for the title next year. That’s the sort of respect consistently winning so much earns you.
Would anyone be shocked if they clamber back into the top 4 this year despite a stunning run of bad form? No. Would anyone be shocked if they repair themselves in the summer and come back refreshed and motivated next season? Absolutely not.
So where does that leave Chelsea? This new team are still pretty undercooked, and need a year under Enzo Maresca to get into shape. But given we were in the title race until Christmas this year, we expect a challenge right until the end of the season next year, if we can continue to tweak and improve the squad in the summer.
Where will Man City be at that stage? It’s impossible to know for sure. But on the evidence of the last decade, we will have to be almost perfect to catch them or beat them to the top.
