In the 23rd round of the Premier League, Manchester City still has one game to play, and they are only two points away from Liverpool at the top of the table.
Next up is Everton, and if they can win again, Manchester City will move to the top of the Premier League table with a string of wins in February** Dynamic Incentive Scheme.
The situation seems to be the same as last season, when Manchester City were battling for the top spot in the Premier League with a disjointed start to the season. The possibility that City will go on to win the league title in the second half of the season is not out of the question.
However, looking at City's overall performance in the first and second halves and the staffing, it is clear that Guardiola has a very unique approach to the squad.
In particular, the performances of Haaland, Spider and Foden indicate that Guardiola has done a good job of renewing the team in advance and implemented it quite perfectly.
However, even this perfection inevitably has some loopholes. Because although Haaland, Spider and Foden are the three main players of Manchester City at the moment, they still can't completely solve Pep Guardiola's troubles.
Speaking of Haaland, from a tactical point of view, he is at the heart of City's attack. Although the presence of a high striker in the pass-and-control system only comes into play when the team passes through or breaks down dense defences, Haaland is an efficient goalscorer.
Unlike other players, he is able to create goalscoring opportunities, turning a seemingly unreasonable pass into a scoring opportunity.
In addition, Haaland has another skill that he has rarely shown since joining Manchester City. That's the handling of ground balls. Haaland isn't just confined to the box.
In other words, his style of play at Borussia Dortmund was not fully on display at Manchester City. He has the ability to receive the ball within 30 metres of the box, then fend off opposition defenders and cut straight into the defence to create chances to shoot.
It's a tactic that Haaland is very good at. It is also the root cause of his susceptibility to injury. So at Manchester City, Pep Guardiola has confined Haaland to the box.
Alvarez has been in a positional conflict with Haaland. In the Argentine national team, Alvarez was Lautaro's substitute, and in the central striker position, he was known for his small and agile role, which has similarities with Sergio Aguero. Therefore, Guardiola brought in Alvarez to replace Sergio Aguero.
However, with the advent of Haaland and the World Cup triumph, Alvarez quickly became a regular player. Pep Guardiola's revamp has been a huge success, positioning Alvarez as a passing point and a second striker in midfield.
Therefore, when there is Haaland up front, Alvarez will score fewer goals. It was only in Haaland's absence that Alvarez really became the centre-forward option, allowing City to return to the overall coordination of the passing system. Alvarez is a key node in the entire Manchester City style of passing.
Foden has always been a fixture in midfield. Not only is he extremely dangerous with his passing, but he also shows ease in pushing forward and linking up with his team-mates. Pep Guardiola particularly values Foden's tireless running. In addition to scoring goals, he was able to fully control the midfield, keeping City in possession of the majority of the ball at all times.
That ability has made him an indispensable future star for Manchester City, just like Alvarez. In the current Manchester City's three main lineups, from front to back, Haaland, Alvarez and Foden are arranged in order, forming a central axis. Although it is theoretically possible to achieve a perfect fit, Guardiola has always found some troubles difficult to solve.
De Bruyne, by contrast, is known as a master of midfield. Once he is on the pitch, the whole Manchester City system will be greatly activated. The pace of the game will be smoother, and the passing coordination will be more handy. Without Kevin De Bruyne, his team-mates would have to struggle to find opportunities and combinations in attack.
But with him joining, the players immediately felt a sense of enlightenment, as if all the cooperation had been tacitly agreed in advance. Especially De Bruyne's passing skills. There is a saying among the fans that if you don't feel good about the ball from Kevin De Bruyne, then you should reflect on whether it is a problem with the position of the ball.
After Kevin De Bruyne returned from injury, Manchester City won on a back-to-back basis. This is not only an improvement in points, but more importantly, an improvement in the overall strength of the team. This is something that even Pep Guardiola has to admire. After all, only Kevin De Bruyne can shut up Pep Guardiola on the pitch.
However, this is also where Guardiola is troubled. Once De Bruyne is on the pitch, Guardiola is at ease, but once he is out, Guardiola is nervous. Although the combination of Haaland, Spider and Foden is tacitly compatible, there is still a certain gap compared to De Bruyne.
Although De Bruyne's contract extension is being negotiated, Guardiola's main task at the moment is to find De Bruyne's ** man, given that he is entering an advanced stage in his career. However, for now, Manchester City have not found the right candidate.