Although Celtic is coached by ex-Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers, no stranger to his Manchester City opponents, the Pep Guardiola led Citizens should have easily pulled out a win against the Scottish champions. However, yesterday's result showed that maybe the rise of Kevin De Bruyne and not the acquisition of Guardiola is the reason behind Manchester City’s place at the top of the Premier League table.
With reports emerging that De Bruyne’s hamstring injury will sideline him for up to four weeks, will the Citizens be able to hold off Spurs, the Gunners and the Reds without their crucial attacking midfielder?
In his second season following his £55 million move to Manchester City, De Bruyne has continued his upward trajectory. However, no one expected him to play like he has to start the 2016-2017 campaign. To kick off the season, the Belgian midfielder has been playing like a world beater, and he's solidified his place as one of Manchester City’s most important players — the Citizens opening an early four-point lead over the rest of the table behind his sustained brilliance.
Kevin De Bruyne Vs Leo Messi pic.twitter.com/B1bbehduDB
— fanatix (@therealfanatix) September 19, 2016
To put his skill into perspective, Pep Guardiola called him “one of the best players I’ve worked with”, and the young attacking midfielder has already bagged a couple goals and four assists in just six games this season.
So, how did Manchester City manage their starting 11 in their first game since the loss of De Bruyne? They moved David Silva back from outside mid into a more central position in Pep’s favored 4-1-4-1 formation, giving Nolito the opportunity to start out on the left.
While Silva is a great playmaker, and clearly Manchester City had no trouble creating chances in their three goal performance, they managed to concede three goals to Celtic, and De Bruyne, with one of the highest work rates in Europe, would've certainly helped when Celtic had possession.
How will Pep deal with the loss of De Bruyne going forward? As yesterday's game showed, shifting Silva into the middle and starting Nolito out wide did not hurt their ability to score, however, the workrate of De Bruyne was clearly missed. Luckily Pep has a few options to choose from. He could keep Nolito and the starting lineup as it was against Celtic, he could try starting the young German Leroy Sané or he could find a place in the starting 11 for Nacho.
Regardless of who he chooses to replace De Bruyne, one thing is certain: Manchester City need to adapt quickly with Spurs, Liverpool and Arsenal hot on their heels.
