How Guardiola found his best Man City XI
As fans and pundits begin to predict City's downfall, Guardiola tinkers with his squad before a long winning streak results in his club being crowned Premier League champions. Whether that storyline plays out at the end of this season is yet to be seen but Guardiola has finally landed on a system he trusts for the run-in. Watch live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer and listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds (both UK users only).
Follow both and live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app. Manchester City started the season with a 4-0 win at Wolves Of the team that started last Sunday's win over Arsenal , only three started their opening league match on 16 August – Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and captain Bernardo Silva. The key differences then were that Rico Lewis and Rayan Ait-Nouri moved in-field from their full-back positions to support Nico Gonzalez while Silva moved into a more attacking midfield position alongside Tijjani Reijnders.
Out of possession, City pressed high. Doku and Oscar Bobb defended close to Haaland, but that often left Wolves ' full-backs free. That detail would become important.
Across the season, City would repeatedly tweak their defensive structure as opponents found various ways to find the spare man. Inspired by assistant Pep Lijnders and signings like Reijnders, they attacked quicker than previous Guardiola sides, destroying Wolves on the counter. This also suited Haaland, who started the season in impressive scoring form but was something Guardiola later reeled in, preferring more measured games.
Rayan Ait-Nouri and Rico Lewis move into more narrow positions from full-back. Nico Gonzales anchors the midfield with Tijjani Reijnders and Bernardo Silva pushing on On 23 August, City lost 2-0 at home to a Tottenham side who are now battling relegation. Omar Marmoush replaced Doku, while Rayan Cherki came into midfield instead of Silva alongside Gonzalez and Reijnders.