Man City tactics: How Pep Guardiola went through many systems to find best XI

Looking back, we see that hints of this latter system were present throughout the season.

Doku’s one-on-one threat on the left had required teams to double down on him since August. O’Reilly’s work began to bear fruit in early September.

Silva’s smart pressing and strengthening helped mitigate City’s weaknesses from November onwards.

Haaland and Semenyo moving around the area, Nunes advancing to provide width from the two-footed Cherki, provided City teams with solutions they were not prepared for.

Khusanov’s pace behind them gave City a get-out-of-jail-free card when they maintained their high line.

Their press also developed. Guardiola tried several versions throughout the year and settled on one in which the wingers block wide passes by pressuring the centre-backs, with Haaland and Cherki blocking the middle of the pitch. These roles suited more physical wingers and protected the less defensive Haaland and Cherki.

City were compact and Silva and Rodri swept the second balls.

A common myth in football is that “playing like Guardiola” means creating a team similar to the one Barcelona created in 2009.

Guardiola admitted that he won because of the players he had; This is partly down to City’s ability to spend big.

But his ability to constantly rebuild his squad based on the players he has available and the league’s tactical tendencies remains second to none.