Pep Guardiola’s Gamble Pays Off

Pep Guardiola was rewarded for his bold selection decision at the Riverside with David Silva and Sergio Aguero guiding Manchester City in the FA Cup semifinals just four days before Wednesday’s crucial Champions League return against AS Monaco.

Silva’s third-minute opener, followed by Aguero’s second for City on 67 minutes, secured a comfortable win against ‘Boro on a day when the home side had goalkeeper Brad Guzan to thank for saving them from a much heavier defeat.

But with this quarterfinal tie sandwiched between last Wednesday’s Premier League stalemate against Stoke City and the Champions League round of 16 second-leg against Monaco on four days’ time, Guardiola could have gambled by resting his key players at the Riverside. Yet despite Aguero being City’s only fit and experienced forward following Gabriel Jesus’ broken metatarsal, the Argentine was selected to start, with the unconvincing Kelechi Iheanacho left on the bench.

Leroy Sane and Kevin De Bruyne (who played alongside Aguero against Stoke) also started this game, with Guardiola opting to get the job done with his best players against ‘Boro rather than risk a weakened team suffering elimination in a competition that arguably provides City’s best chance of silverware this season.

So often this season, Premier League clubs have paid a heavy price for squad rotation in the FA Cup but Guardiola took no chances. Whether he suffers the consequences against Monaco on Wednesday remains to be seen, with his players perhaps being overworked with three high-intensity games in the space of a week.

But psychologically, at least, it will be much easier to go to Monaco next week with a place in the FA Cup semifinals secured and the route to a trophy still very much open.

Manchester City’s pursuit of silverware this season won’t hinge on how many goals they score, but how successfully they can keep them out at the other end. Although they were able to defeat Middlesbrough without conceding on Saturday, it was more by accident than design.

Pep Guardiola has built a supreme attacking force at the Etihad but any team is only as strong as its weakest link and City’s defensive vulnerability continues to be alarming. They got away with it at the Riverside, with ‘Boro unable to take advantage of the mistakes made by goalkeeper Claudio Bravo and centre-halves John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi. At left-back, Gael Clichy was repeatedly beaten for pace by winger Adama Traore, who overcame a slow start to emerge as the home side’s biggest threat going forward.

Middlesbrough were toothless in attack, but Monaco have already given City a warning of their ability to put the ball in the net and the French outfit will take advantage if Guardiola’s team prove as erratic at the back in midweek.

Bravo, at least, will be back on the substitutes’ bench against Monaco but Stones and Otamendi may yet face Radamel Falcao & Co. Against ‘Boro, both players were caught in possession more than once, with Stones taking too many risks once again.

Man City outscored Monaco 5-3 in the first leg but their luck may run out if they continue to take chances defensively.

Aitor Karanka will now have no distractions in his battle to keep Middlesbrough in the Premier League after his team were comfortably dispatched from the FA Cup by Manchester City. But the Spaniard may find himself fighting on two fronts, on and off the pitch, if he is to successfully steer his side away from relegation.

Last week’s 2-0 defeat at Stoke saw ‘Boro drop into the bottom three after a woeful run that has seen the team score just once in the league since the start of 2017. They’re dropping like a stone but the manner of their slide is creating frustration among supporters, who regard Karanka’s tactics as overly cautious and leaving the team exposed when facing opponents prepared to go on the attack.

The former Real Madrid coach was berated by fans during this game for being inactive in the technical area — he spent virtually the entire 90 minutes with his hands in his pockets — while Pep Guardiola constantly issued instructions and motivation to his City players.

Tactically, City were always going to pose some searching questions but by deploying Rudy Gestede (and then substitute Alvaro Negredo) in a lone centre-forward role, Karanka did not give ‘Boro the platform to hurt the visitors unless it came from a set-piece.

If not for some crucial saves by goalkeeper Brad Guzan, Boro’s defeat would have been much heavier and potentially the kind of hammering that could cost Karanka his job.