Wayne Rooney has said that Manchester City are the best in the Premier League in terms of how they press teams.
The Citizens recently came from behind to beat Manchester United 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium last weekend.
Now though, one pundit and former top-flight star, who knows what it takes to play for United, has highlighted one aspect of the game that City completely dominate in.
Rooney says City are the best pressers
Speaking on TNT Sports ahead of United’s Premier League match against Everton at Old Trafford, Rooney had this to say when discussing how the Red Devils play when they’re out of possession.
He said: “Manchester United, they press as individuals, they play as individuals, not so much as a team. Sometimes when you go and press the ball you have to go again and go again.
“I think Man City, you talk about how they play and move the ball, they’re the best at it, at winning the ball and pressing as a group.”
Back in September, a report from The Athletic revealed that City do the majority of their pressing in the final third of the pitch rather than in midfield or in their own half.
While the Blues have made fewer tackles in the defensive third (130) and midfield third (151) than any other side in the league this season, they have made 63 in the attacking third, which is more than the likes of Newcastle United (57) and Aston Villa (48) among others have made.
Although, with City having the highest average of possession (65.7%) in the division for this campaign, pressing the opposition isn’t something the Treble winners have to do very often.
Despite that, Rooney’s assessment of this particular factor of the game shows just how high City have set the levels for every other side in the country.
