Unbalanced Man City cling to faint title hopes as Haaland struggles
With eight matches remaining and a game in hand on leaders Arsenal - who still have to go to Etihad Stadium - it would be premature to say Manchester City 's Premier League title race is over. But Saturday evening, when Arsenal earned a dramatic late win over Everton before City were held at West Ham , felt as if it could be pivotal. Not only because City are nine points behind the Gunners with only one game in hand, but because they looked wholly unconvincing in their draw at London Stadium.
After the game, City manager Pep Guardiola admitted he is still trying to find "balance" in his squad while talismanic striker Erling Haaland scrabbles for form. Not the position any major team want to find themselves in, least of all after their 30th league game. And their problems are summed up by the form of the man on whom they have so often been able to rely.
In his first 17 league games this season, Haaland scored 19 goals. In his past 12 matches, he has netted only three. Haaland's drop in form has coincided with the arrival of Antoine Semenyo.
With the former Bournemouth winger having hit the ground running since his move in January, Guardiola has changed his system to try to get the best out of all the attacking talents at his disposal. This has included moving to a two-man attack, a tactic Guardiola almost never used in his first 10 years at City but has deployed as the starting formation in nine of their past 11 games. At West Ham , City lined up with Haaland and Omar Marmoush as a front two with Semenyo playing as a number 10 - and it simply did not work as they dominated possession but were shut down by the massed ranks of West Ham defenders.
City lacked any intensity in the first half, perhaps an impact of the comprehensive midweek Champions League defeat at Real Madrid - both physically and mentally. After the break, City switched to a 4-3-3 with Semenyo and Marmoush as wingers. Early in the second half, Rayan Cherki came on as an attacking midfielder and chances flowed.