Following a shocking defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace on Monday, Champions Manchester City fell nine points behind runaway Premier League leaders Chelsea.
The Citizens, who now lie fourth on the table, have also played a game more than the Blues and have all but surrendered their title. Interestingly, Manuel Pellegrinia s side have now suffered three defeats in the last six games and have lost four away games on the trot.
After spending heavily on the defense, midfield and forward lines over the two transfer windows this season, ita s safe to say that more was expected out of the club which had won two out of the last three Premier League titles and former Manchester United captain Gary Neville is in agreement with that.
a This is a talented squad, along with Chelsea the best squad in the league. They should be pushing them all the way in the league.
They are falling well short of where they should be. Make no mistake about that.a
Neville also stressed upon the fact that this team hasna t quite been able to live up to the expectations and not just this year, but in its overall performance. According to the Sky Sports pundit, City should have been fighting in more than one competition and actually making a real push in the Champions League.
a We said three, four months ago, ‘it is now or never for this team’. They cannot progress beyond the last 16 of the Champions League, they cannot sustain success by winning back-to-back championships, they are getting older and their average age is the highest in the league.
a Unfortunately some of those lads are not going to be there next season. That Manchester City team, with the ambition and quality they have, should be doing better than that.a
City will now take on Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday as they look to climb back above their neighbors who have been in superb form of late. United have now won five games in a row, defeating Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool quite comprehensively in recent weeks.
United who have not won the Manchester derby at home in the last three years will know that a chance such as this may not present itself again.