It was truly a game of two halves, a game that highlighted the attacking strengths and defensive vulnerabilities of both teams. However, City capitalized on their opportunity, while Tottenham Hotspur failed to do the same. Nonetheless, a few standout performances from young talents on both sides would have surely left Pep Guardiola and Ange Postecoglou encouraged.
Tactical analysis and match report by Rahul Madhavan.
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Both Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City’s seasons hadn’t gone as planned, but this late February clash felt like a crucial opportunity for both sides to steer their campaigns in the right direction.
For Tottenham, doubts have surfaced over Ange Postecoglou following a poor run in the league. Injuries has significantly impacted their form, but sitting in the bottom half of the table after 25 games was far from what the Spurs faithful had envisioned. However, recent victories over Manchester United and Ipswich Town in the span of a week would have certainly provided a much-needed confidence boost.
Postecoglou made two changes from their recent win against Ipswich. Guglielmo Vicario retained his place in goal, while Pedro Porro returned to the backline ahead of Djed Spence, joining Kevin Danso, Archie Gray, and Destiny Udogie. In midfield, Lucas Bergvall partnered Rodrigo Bentancur, with James Maddison slotting into his preferred No. 10 role. Wilson Odobert earned his first start after a lengthy injury spell, while Brennan Johnson and Mathys Tel completed the attack.
Meanwhile, Manchester City were also looking to regain momentum after a difficult three-month stretch that saw them slip from title contention to merely fighting for a top-four spot. Defeats to Real Madrid in the Champions League and Liverpool in the league had dented their confidence, but given the quality of both opponents, those losses were somewhat understandable. But a victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium—a ground where they have historically struggled—would propel them back into the top four.
Guardiola also made some changes following their recent defeat to Liverpool. Ederson remained in goal, while Rúben Dias and Matheus Nunes replaced Nathan Aké and Rico Lewis in defense, alongside Abdukodir Khusanov and Joško Gvardiol. In midfield, Nico González partnered Mateo Kovačić for the first time, while Guardiola opted for a dynamic front four featuring Savinho, Jérémy Doku, Omar Marmoush, and Erling Haaland.
Move through Jérémy Doku and Savinho
Pep Guardiola’s front four suggested a more direct approach against Spurs’ high press. That has been a recurring trend for City lately, as they have adopted a more direct style against teams that use a man-oriented structure out of possession.
Initially, Guardiola instructed Matheus Nunes to invert alongside Mateo Kovačić in their usual 3-2 shape, while González played higher on the left to link up with Jérémy Doku. The game plan was straightforward—City’s primary creative outlets were on the flanks, supported by two players who thrive inside the box. The idea was to get the ball wide and capitalize on the movement of Haaland and Marmoush.
However, Spurs’ pressing also worked in City’s favor. With Maddison and Bergvall pushing high to press City’s midfield pivots, Bentancur—positioned as the screen in front of the center-backs—was left with too much ground to cover against the movements of González and Marmoush. This also meant Udogie and Porro were frequently left in one-versus-one battles against Doku and Savinho, a matchup that strongly favored City. Many of their early chances stemmed from exploiting this, as they consistently found the Belgian winger in space.
How did City progress through the thirds? With their back three and midfield pivots tightly marked, they usually used Ederson as the spare man in build-up. The goalkeeper played precise, low passes into the feet of Haaland and Marmoush, who drew defenders in before releasing the wide players against the isolated full-backs. If Maddison or Bergvall failed to step up and block Ederson’s passing lanes, City easily bypassed Spurs’ press by using the man advantage. This exact approach led to their opening goal in the 11th minute.
Minute 11: Build up to Manchester City’s goal. Ederson, acting as the spare man, fizzes a pass into the dropping Omar Marmoush. With Bentancur covering the passing lane to Erling Haaland, Danso steps up to engage Marmoush but fails to win the duel. The Egyptian then turns and finds the isolated Savinho.
From there, City’s movement and intelligence take over. Marmoush immediately makes an overlapping run, dragging Udogie with him. Meanwhile, Haaland drops deeper to link play, using the free man, González, to connect with Doku. As City outnumber Spurs in attack, the hosts are forced to retreat, following which Doku picked out Haaland’s run for a simple tap-in.
Meanwhile, City’s right-sided dynamics worked slightly differently. Savinho’s ability to attract defenders created space for both Marmoush and Nunes. With Marmoush focusing on adding numbers in the box, it was Nunes’ powerful running that was used effectively to exploit the gap. His underlapping runs, especially when Savinho was double marked, provided City with a valuable attacking outlet down the right as well.
Ultimately, it was a half of controlled dominance for the visitors. Doku alone created three big chances, while Spurs managed just one shot on goal, which came from a set-piece.
An improved Spurs half
Spurs struggled to gain momentum in the first half, but they had opportunities to exploit City’s setup. As he did last season, Guardiola instructed his wingers to press the center-backs, while Marmoush and Haaland stayed central to mark Bentancur and either Maddison or Bergvall when they dropped deep. With Porro pushing higher up the pitch and Udogie tucking in as a wide center-back in possession, Spurs primarily looked to build through the right flank.
Early on, Doku had difficulty timing his press against the center-backs, allowing them to carry the ball forward comfortably and find Porro. This led to a recurring two-versus-one situation against Gvardiol, but Spurs struggled to capitalize due to misplaced passes and a lack of rhythm in possession. Around the half-hour mark, Guardiola adjusted his pressing structure, instructing Doku to track Porro instead of pressing higher. As a result, Postecoglou was forced to tweak Spurs’ attacking approach in the second half, a change that proved effective.
The hosts were aided by City’s increasingly disjointed press. Haaland and Marmoush struggled to find the balance between pressing the center-backs and sitting back, which allowed Spurs to find Bergvall and Maddison with ease. Maddison, in particular, grew into the game and became highly influential.
City also struggled physically, frequently losing possession in midfield. All these issues have plagued Guardiola’s side this season, and they persisted as Postecoglou introduced Heung-Min Son, Dejan Kulusevski, Djed Spence, and Pape Sarr around the hour mark.
Spurs’ attacking dynamics shifted after the break, as they focused on getting Odobert (and later Son) against Nunes on the left flank rather than relying on direct passes to Johnson on the right. After the substitutions, Maddison, Son, and Spence became heavily involved in the buildup, posing problems that City struggled to contain through Nunes and Savinho.
Minute 68: Spurs’ attacking strategy and City’s defensive struggles: Haaland and Marmoush showed little urgency in pressing the center-backs, allowing Spurs’ second line to step into space and receive the ball. Spence’s pace became a major factor, as his overlapping runs created difficulties for Nunes. The gap between City’s midfield and backline was also evident—when Spence received a pass from Son, he had the time and space to cut the ball back to Sarr, who was unmarked but failed to convert the chance.
City had opportunities on the break, but poor decision-making from their young attacking lineup didn’t do Guardiola any favors. In response, he turned to the experience of Phil Foden, Ilkay Gündoğan and Bernardo Silva to see out the game. Despite a few late scares, they did just that, securing a crucial victory to strengthen their top-four ambitions.
Takeaways
This may not have been Tottenham Hotspur’s best performance by any stretch, but Postecoglou’s men certainly deserved something from the game. After a lackluster first half, a shift in approach and the introduction of experienced players saw them improve. However, once again, they failed to capitalize on key chances when it mattered most. Still, they will take plenty of positives into their crucial Europa League clash against AZ Alkmaar next week.
For Manchester City, the result was vital. Guardiola will be encouraged by the performances of his new signings and young talents. Doku proved he also has the final ball in his locker, while Savio continued to shine. Khusanov, Marmoush, and González also showed promising signs, fitting into City’s evolving squad as they prepare for a summer rebuild. In the past, City have faltered when the opposition gained momentum, but this time, they stood firm—something that will also please Guardiola.