Manchester City will be looking to get things back on track after the international break after four straight defeats.
It is not very often at all that Manchester City are in this position, and Pep Guardiola has plenty to consider right now.
Guardiola has only ever lost four games in a row once before, and he will be determined to ensure he doesn’t oversee a fifth in the next game against Tottenham Hotspur.
City have had several injuries recently that have been very unhelpful.
Pundit Gary Neville has said he has zero sympathy for Guardiola and City about the injuries, and those of a non-City persuasion are bound to agree. But there is no denying the likes of Ruben Dias and Rodri – who are both big leaders – have been greatly missed.
But certainly, some players have fallen way short of expectations this season, and Manchester City News looks at a few players who really need to step things up.
Kyle Walker
Walker has retained a decent level of support from pundits in the media, but City fans are certainly starting to lose faith in the 34-year-old now.
Walker returned to City late in the summer after being on England duty, and that busy summer appears to have been affecting him this campaign.
Guardiola admitted that Walker has not trained much for City, but said he can get away with that due to his top physical condition.
Walker may have a top physical condition, but his performances have been a concern this season.
Against Bournemouth, the £50 million man was torn apart by Antoine Semenyo and at Brighton Kaoru Mitoma gave him problems.
WhoScored have him ranked as only the 17th-best City player this season based on average match rating (6.43). John Stones is one place below but has the same average rating, with Jahmai Simpson-Pusey, James McAtee and Nathan Ake bringing up the rear.
Former City defender Stuart Pearce called Walker ‘world-class’ only a few months ago, but world-class performances from him have nonexistent this season.
Ilkay Gundogan
It’s somewhat painful to place Ilkay Gundogan on a list like this – but the City legend just hasn’t lived up to expectations so far in his second stint at the club.
The move to bring Gundogan in the summer was widely praised. Fans and pundits felt it was a no-brainer to bring back a player who already knows the team, the manager and the culture of the club.
But Gundogan has been disappointing so far.
His performance against Newcastle United earlier this season was alarmingly poor, and it’s difficult to recall too many games this term where Gundogan has been particularly influential.
Indeed, Jamie Carragher claimed Gundogan doesn’t look the same player as in his first spell.
In his defence, the German was not brought back to feature as heavily as he has done.
Rodri’s injury is forcing him to pay more minutes than he can probably really manage, which is why City must bring in a new midfielder in January.
Phil Foden
He’s been improving in recent weeks, but Guardiola still needs a lot more from Phil Foden.
The academy graduate has started the season very slowly after winning Player of the Season in 2023/24 and he only has three goals and two assists to his name so far. He has yet to open his account in the Premier League.
That said, like Walker, he returned to City late in the summer after his exploits for England.
It is very possible that Foden has been suffering from a bit of burnout given his heavy use for both club and country in recent times.
But Guardiola needs him to kick on after the international break, because at the moment there is an overreliance on Haaland to score the goals. Foden must start chipping in more regularly, and fans will back him to do that.
