Centre-backs play left-back, offensive midfielders play winger, attackers play attacking midfielder, and defenders play midfield.
No, this is not some wacky Fantasy Premier League club, but rather Pep Guardiola’s recent methods. It also works flawlessly.
Guardiola was so captivated by Johan Cruyff’s Total Football concept that he took it and turned Manchester City into a Treble-winning juggernaut of square pegs growing within round holes.
When given the opportunity to operate in midfield, Nathan Ake and Manu Akanji demonstrated that no natural left-back is required to win a triple-crown, while John Stones ignited into the finest form of his career.
Jack Grealish left Aston Villa as an offensive midfielder to join City as a talented wideman. This season, Julian Alvarez has frequently filled in for the injured Kevin De Bruyne by dropping in behind Erling Haaland, much to Phil Foden’s chagrin.
Foden, like Grealish, climbed through the ranks as a versatile midfielder who could play both centrally and in an attacking role. When he first got into the first squad, he was used in both positions, but he finally became a flanker.
Nobody could dispute that De Bruyne should have been deposed as offensive midfielder in recent years. The irrepressible Belgian has had the position on lockdown for the entirety of Guardiola’s reign, forcing Foden to play wherever he can.
He hasn’t played in center midfield in the Premier League since 2021, but he has recently played in his preferred number 10 spot. Foden was the standout player versus Newcastle as Haaland’s support act.
Speaking a little while afterwards, he said: “That’s my favourite one, that’s where I feel comfortable. I felt alive in that game, I felt myself more and I could get on the ball and do things.
“That’s always been me as a player and hopefully I can keep playing there and show people what I can do. It [the position] is one I can handle. There’s a lot of responsibility, it’s not just about going forward.”
Unfortunately, he has not been afforded the exclusivity of the number 10 role so far this season, although has enjoyed several displays there. Sure, he has cut inside from the wing to dovetail with Alvarez but really, it is Alvarez’s position he wants full-time.
He faces the same situation with England but for different reasons. Gareth Southgate played him as a winger at the World Cup and in recent years has used a midfield that contains a pivot rather than an attacking midfielder.
Simply put, there is no number 10 position for Foden to occupy right now. When brought on against Ukraine, he was taken off for James Maddison, another attacking midfielder who played on the wing. So the frustration continues. There is an opportunity, though.
Alvarez will not be played behind Haaland for every game between now and De Bruyne’s expected new year return, and Foden is next in line. He must grab the bull by the horns when given the opportunity, as he was against Sevilla in the UEFA Super Cup.
City fans are expecting a big season from Foden and he must prove that he can be the main attacking engine when 32-year-old De Bruyne’s legs finally fade. He must give Southgate no option but to operate him there ahead of next year’s Euros in Germany.
Manchester City away shirt 23/24
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