Manchester City have been the dominant force in English football in recent years.
Over the past seven years, City have won six Premier League titles as well as numerous other domestic and European trophies.
This due to the management of Pep Guardiola and the strength of the squad he’s built during his time at the Etihad Stadium.
Having become the first side to win four consecutive league titles last season, the Blues are now on the hunt to pick up a fifth.
Although, Guardiola admitted that winning five consecutive titles in a row doesn’t motivate him as much as breaking the record for four in a row did.
Now though, with the latest international break out of the way, a pundit and former top-flight player has called out a current Premier League side for the way they’ve tried to copy a specific aspect of how City play.
Paul Merson baffled by Man City copycats
While previewing Southampton’s upcoming Premier League match against Leicester City, Merson said this in his recent column for Sportskeeda about how the Saints have been trying to copy the way Guardiola’s side play this season.
He said: “I feel Southampton are way too predictable. If they keep doing the same things they’ve done so far, it could be curtains for them soon.
“At Manchester City, they start with Ederson and then he pings the ball up the pitch to create a goalscoring chance. It drives me up the wall when clubs like Southampton are trying to do the same, it’s madness!”
Have Southampton been trying to copy City this season?
With seven league games played ahead of the latest round of top-flight fixtures, the Citizens have won five and drawn two of their matches, scoring 17 goals and conceding eight along the way.
In comparison, the South Coast club have lost six and drawn one of their seven matches, bagging just four goals and letting 15 in.
Interestingly, with City having the highest percentage of completed passes in the Premier League this season with a total of 88.9%, Southampton have the second-highest with a percentage of 86.3%.
However, the Saints have made more errors (10) that have led to an opponent having a shot at goal more than any other side in the division.
This showcases Russel Martin’s pass-heavy style of play, but also how it may be a problem for them if they continue to play that way and not improve.
Moving forward, with the champions set to take on Southampton later this month, it’ll be intriguing to see how both sides play given their similar styles.
