During the international break, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola would have pondered over how his side can trounce Tottenham Hotspur and put an end to their four-match losing streak.
Despite their recent run of results, it might be premature to consider the form Guardiola and Co have been in as a crisis.
However, another defeat or even Manchester City dropping further points could raise a cause for concern for their supporters.
Despite Tottenham being in 10th place in the Premier League table, their quality remains undeniable.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LiverpoolLiverpool | 11 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 21 | 6 | 15 | 28 |
| 2 |  Man CityManchester City | 11 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 22 | 13 | 9 | 23 |
| 3 |  ChelseaChelsea | 11 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 21 | 13 | 8 | 19 |
| 4 |  ArsenalArsenal | 11 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 18 | 12 | 6 | 19 |
| 5 |  Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 11 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 19 |
| 6 |  BrightonBrighton | 11 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 19 |
| 7 |  FulhamFulham | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 13 | 3 | 18 |
| 8 |  NewcastleNewcastle | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 18 |
| 9 |  Aston VillaAston Villa | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 17 | 0 | 18 |
| 10 |  TottenhamTottenham | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 23 | 13 | 10 | 16 |
Despite the Sky Blues played a rotated team in their previous meeting, Spurs did come out on top as they won 2-1.
One Tottenham player who Manchester City must keep a close eye on is Son Heung-min.
Man City should beware of Tottenham’s Son Heung-min
The South Korean international remains one of the most dangerous forwards in the Premier League.
In just eight league starts this season, the 32-year-old has registered eight goals and eight assists.
But more importantly from Manchester City’s perspective, Son has an incredible record against them.
| SON STATS VS MAN CITY | |||
| COMPETITION | MATCHES | GOALS | ASSISTS |
| PREMIER LEAGUE | 16 | 3 | 0 |
| CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | 2 | 5 | 4 |
| CARABAO CUP | 1 | 0 | 0 |
In all competitions, the former Bayer Leverkusen winger has scored eight goals and assisted nine in 19 games.
A common theme over the years in a number of goals that the Spurs skipper has scored against City have come in transition.
Even last season, Son opened the scoring in Tottenham’s 2-2 draw against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, dispatching the ball past Ederson Moraes after Giovanni Lo Celso’s pinpoint pass caught the hosts out.
Another prime example of such a goal was in the 2020/2021 season where Tottenham beat the Sky Blues 2-0 under Jose Mourinho’s reign.
Tanguy Ndombele clipped a ball for Son, who ran behind Manchester City’s defence and opened the scoring with a typically clinical finish.
Tottenham remain a team that are ruthless on the break, with Son and Brennan Johnson being excellent outlets while Dejan Kulusevski is terrific at driving forward with the ball.
As per Opta Analyst, Manchester City have conceded 0.91 shots per league game on the counter this season, which is 50 per cent higher than the average they have conceded in their four consecutive title-winning campaigns.
| SEASON | SHOTS CONCEDED ON THE BREAK |
| 2020/2021 | 0.34 |
| 2021/2022 | 0.37 |
| 2022/2023 | 0.66 |
| 2023/2024 | 0.5 |
| 2024/2025 | 0.91 |
It has also been revealed that this City side have conceded the highest xG (expected goal) value per non-penalty shot out of any team in the league: 0.15.
After Tottenham (42.3%), no team in the English top-flight have also shipped a higher majority of their chances through the middle of the pitch than the Sky Blues (39.1%).
Based on the statistics as well as Son’s impressive goal record against Manchester City, all the signs point towards them being in danger if they do not manage to curb Spurs’ influence from a defensive standpoint.
As a result, perhaps it might be wise that Matheus Nunes should start against Tottenham, considering he can bring a degree of energy and athleticism to Manchester City’s midfield on Saturday.
Pep Guardiola said Son “punishes” Manchester City
After Stefan Ortega’s heroic save to keep Son’s effort from close range out in City’s 2-0 win against the Lilywhites in their second-last league game of the season, Pep Guardiola admitted how much the versatile attacker has been a nuisance in his side.
Guardiola said via Football.London: “You know how many times Son punishes us the last seven, eight years? How many goals they score with Harry Kane? Oh my God.”
Pep Guardiola certainly needs no reminding of how dangerous the Tottenham legend is.
Even Manuel Akanji lauded how clinical a finisher Son is.
Akanji told the Premier League’s official YouTube channel: “Most of the time, you try, for example, if it’s close to the goal, you don’t want to let him [an attacker] shoot on his strong foot because every player shoots better with his strong foot than his weak foot. Except maybe Heung min-Son.
Manchester City’s defence and midfield will have to be in sync to keep Son quiet.
Otherwise, the veteran could punish them once again and lead Tottenham to getting an unexpected victory over the Premier League champions.
