The Premier League has a knack recently for drawing the ‘Big Six’ against each other at moments of deeply contrasting fortunes.
Manchester City have rarely felt so free, so effervescent, under Pep Guardiola, playing football as good as anything we saw in their 'centurians' season and increasingly without any real sense of pressure from their rivals.
Tottenham Hotspur, on the other hand, have rarely felt so imprisoned, so drained.
Jose Mourinho versus Pep Guardiola is one of the greatest rivalries in the history of the sport, and their contradictory ideologies have created arguably the neatest and most captivating story of the 21st century.
At times it felt like a wrestle for football’s soul, the aesthete versus the pragmatist, and if that’s the case then there was a clear winner. In the end, the Mourinho-inspired conservatism that dominated the early 2000s gave way to the expressive idealism of Guardiola and his disciplines.
And, in truth, the rivalry has been dead since 2013. Mourinho has been in terminal decline for the past five years. Guardiola won the war. His ideas have disseminated across Europe and in this world he helped create - one dominated by pressing and possession - there isn’t really a place at the top for Mourinho’s model.
That is presumably how most Tottenham fans feel at the moment, and certainly those who have already given up on the tediously dull football Mourinho has brought to north London. To go from the warmth of Mauricio Pochettino and his progressive style to Mourinho was always going to be sharp; it was always going to be rejected without quick returns.
Kane key to any Tottenham hopes
That does not necessarily mean Saturday’s game is a foregone conclusion because with Harry Kane back in Tottenham’s starting line-up they have the potential to hit City on the counter-attack.
Mourinho’s cautious defensive football will hope to nullify Guardiola’s new focus on low-tempo possession, with Kane and Son Heung-Min attempting to become the first partnership to break through Man City this year.
Kane is Spurs’ chief playmaker and goalscorer, a one-man band whose influence was made stark in his recent absence – and in the instant impact he made upon his return last weekend.
West Brom were opened up by his ability to drop between the lines and create, as well as his movement inside the penalty area. It is possible that Man City’s high defensive line will be caught out.
Guardiola has made possession the central tenet of his team’s playing style this season, adapting to the pandemic and seeking to control the chaos by sucking everything into the centre of the pitch.
City games are put on lockdown; Joao Cancelo comes into midfield, forming a strong shield against the counter-attack alongside Rodri and in front of a back three, while the false nine joins inverted wingers in drawing the game into the middle.
Kane may be able to take advantage of that, with Son making runs down the left flank into the gaps left by John Stones. Man City deploy a very wide back three in possession, with Ruben Dias alone centrally as Stones and a left-back cover the flanks, which in theory leaves room for Son’s runs into the channels – if Kane can find him.
Kane versus Cancelo is the game’s most important battle, because most teams this season have been unable to track the England striker’s movement as he drops into free number ten positions. Should Cancelo, Rodri, and Guardiola’s 3-2 defensive block of bodies get tight to Kane then the game is theirs.
It’s that simple, such is the tactical disarray and weariness of Mourinho’s team right now: stop Kane and you stop Tottenham.
City the opposite of a one-man team
Man City, of course, are far more varied in their attacking play and represent a major challenge to a stuttering Spurs defence.
Phil Foden’s superb form has been the catalyst of some outstanding recent performances that are probably best summarised by their ultra-fluidity; by the constant positional changes and the tempo of their passing. Spurs cannot focus on one particular player or even one style of attack.
Mourinho will most likely deploy a back six again, either by instructing his central midfielders to drop into the defensive half-spaces, as he did in the reverse fixture, or instructing the wingers to become auxiliary full-backs.
Either way, we can anticipate territorial dominance from the hosts as Spurs look to block off every passing angle into the penalty area.
It won’t be the most enjoyable game for the neutral, then, and with confidence low among the Spurs players this should only go one way. Mourinho’s defenders are running through treacle, a consequence of confused tactical messaging and low morale, and that should allow the complexity of how Foden, Riyad Mahrez and Ilkay Gundogan operate to simply overwhelm the visitors.
The Tottenham manager will be hoping City’s narrowness makes it easier for his team to stay compact and hold back the tide but this kind of tactical approach – once the foundation of a fascinating rivalry – makes less and less sense as time goes on.
Spurs are vulnerable and Man City are soaring, and it is telling that this game is no longer being advertised with a ‘Guardiola versus Mourinho’ angle. These days, a relentless battle of attack versus defence can only end one way. Football has moved on.
Follow Sporting Life on social - find us on Facebook here or tweet @SportingLifeFC
Related football content
Responsible gambling
We are committed in our support of responsible gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133, or visit begambleaware.org.
Further support and information can be found at GamCare and gamblingtherapy.org.
