Manchester City kicked off their title defence with a dominant display over Arsenal at the Emirates and looked as though they had never been away, writes DEAN WORKMAN.
Pep Guardiola’s team swept all opposition aside as they romped home to the Premier League title last season, breaking nine records along the way. Some of the records set by City last season were astonishing, to say the least.
The Citizens smashed the records for most consecutive wins (18), most passes (902), most goals (106), most wins (32), most points (100), most away wins (16), most away points (50), goal difference (+79) and points ahead of second (19).
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What was truly remarkable was City’s relentless desire and hunger to win every game in a manner that had never been seen in the Premier League.
The 2017-18 season, however, is behind us and City now face the challenge of becoming the first team to defend the Premier League title since Manchester United in the 2008-09 season.
On the basis of Saturday’s performance, Guardiola and his charges look equipped to march to victory once again.
City dismantled Unai Emery’s side, winning 2-0 on the day, a scoreline that was much closer than the actual game.
The Citizens were rampant in the first half and they could well have been out of sight at the break, despite only leading 1-0. City then got their second with 30 minutes to play and clearly took their foot off the gas.
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The scary aspect for City’s title rivals is that the starting lineup named by Guardiola over the weekend was missing the likes of David Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Vincent Kompany, Nicolas Otamendi, Gabriel Jesus and Leroy Sane.
The players are so well-coached that any variation of the starting lineup could produce an equally brilliant performance.
City have a squad capable of battling injuries, fixture congestion and a loss of form. They also have a manager who instils a winning mentality and desire in his players.
Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur will all undoubtedly harbour ambitions of dethroning the champions, but City look to be even better and are certainly favourites to defend their crown, while also targeting success across the other competitions.
