Facing Liverpool with a 4-striker formation, this is the response of Guardiola
The Super Big Match duel between Liverpool and Manchester City last weekend ended equally strong, 1-1. However, there was something different from Liverpool, where coach Jurgen Klopp seemed to field four strikers at once from the first minute.
It can be said that this unusual formation stems from the presence of Diogo Jota in the Reds squad. The player was bought from Wolverhampton last summer, where initially the Portuguese player was projected to be a coating for the Firmansah Trio.
But in fact, Diogo Jota performed well and was even considered to have exceeded Jurgen Klopp’s expectations. Not only that, some people think Jota is better than Firmino.
Sure enough, the 23-year-old player made coach Jurgen Klopp change his formation to 4-2-3-1 or use four strikers on the front lines in the match against Manchester City last weekend.
Technically, the four attackers should have produced more goals. But in reality Liverpool can only score one goal throughout the match. Fortunately, Manchester City were the same so the match ended in a draw.
Regardless of the final result, coach Pep Guardiola admits that dealing with Liverpool who carry such a different formation is not easy.
“It’s not easy to defend against Liverpool, normally they have three players up front and now it’s four,”
“They run behind the defense and you can’t stay there, and they play among the players,” Guardiola told Sky Sports after the match.
Furthermore, the former Barcelona coach also seemed disappointed with Kevin De Bruyne’s penalty which failed to produce a goal, so his team failed to win.
“We scored a good goal and unfortunately missed the penalty. In a game or an opponent like Liverpool, if you miss a penalty, it will be even more difficult,” he concluded.
After the match, Pep Guardiola had more time to strategize for the next match against Tottenham Hotspur which will be held on 22 November.
For now, Citizen is still ranked 10th in the Premier League standings.