While waving their checkbooks to recruit players everywhere, they are trying their best to retain key players. The summer window experience of the two Manchester City giants can be described as ice and fire. After spending 180 million euros to acquire four strong reinforcements, they may have to strengthen multiple positions in the future. The Red Devils may no longer be satisfied with the fight for the top four. After losing key players for two consecutive seasons, Guardiola's team may face the most severe challenge in the "six years and five championships" era. In addition to resisting the impact of Arsenal, they must also beware of challenges from rivals in the same city.

[The championship lineup gradually disintegrated, and the "second-year student" took on the heavy responsibility]

The league established an advantage at the last moment, the FA Cup final narrowly defeated the opponent, and the revenge was completed by the former defeated opponent in the Champions League knockout round. Manchester City struggled for most of the last season. The added effect brought by Kovacic and Nunes was really limited, and failed to eliminate the negative impact caused by the departure of Gundogan and Mahrez. Manchester City in the Guardiola era can be called a championship harvester. Many players have the idea of changing clubs after winning the "Grand Slam". After Gundogan, it was Alvarez. It was not easy for the management team to convince De Bruyne to stay for another season.

Guardiola's tactical philosophy requires high skills, football intelligence and execution from his subordinates. Players who have not received resources often need a long time to adapt to the new environment. Mahrez, Sane, Bernardo Silva and Grealish all took on important tasks in the second season after joining Manchester City. Doku and Gvardiol have shown their talents in the last season and will play a more important role in the new season. Savio from the City Group is expected to break this curse. The growth of Nunes and Kovacic also determines the upper limit of this team.

【There are many mysteries behind the center forward, Manchester City needs to spread its wings and fly】

In the sprint stage of the league last season, Guardiola once again offered cutting-edge scientific and technological achievements. Gvardiol played his worth as a "winger", and Manchester City relied on a wave of consecutive victories to overtake Arsenal. Using a reverse approach to create tactical changes, Gvardiol's highlight performance contrasted the downturn of Manchester City's wingers. Many teams adopt extremely conservative strategies to compress Haaland's activity space. Guardiola has to make a lot of trial and error in the wing combination. Grealish's state has declined, De Bruyne has been injured frequently, and it is obviously not enough to rely solely on Foden and Doku's output. Guardiola attaches great importance to Savio. The young player is expected to get tactical resources tilted, just like Haaland and Akanji did in the rookie season.

Since there is no fresh blood injected into the midfield and backcourt, Manchester City will continue to use the 3241 and 4141 formations. Guardiola promoted elite players from the echelon (Bob, James McCarty and Nico O'Reilly) while continuing to enrich his tactical bag. If the depth of the No. 9 position cannot be consolidated before the window closes, Guardiola may restart the strikerless formation when Haaland cannot play, and Bernardo Silva must be prepared. With Walker's aging, Guardiola also needs to consider the adjustment of the right back. Cancelo is obviously not in the plan, and Rico Lewis's growth is very critical.

[Manchester United makes a comeback with a bang]

Last season, Manchester City only got 12 points (2 wins, 6 draws and 1 loss) in the Big6 small league, and did not win 4 games against championship opponents (3 draws and 1 loss). Both league duels were lost, and Manchester United scored a goal in the FA Cup final. This key victory helped Ten Hag keep his position as coach. Since Ten Hag took office, Manchester United has completed large-scale purchases for three consecutive summer windows. Players who meet the new coach's tactical ideas have come one after another. The Red Devils are expected to officially complete the cut with the old era in the new season.

Last season, Manchester United suffered an average of 16 shots from opponents per game, and the average expected number of goals lost per game was 2.1. Both of these data ranked in the top three in the Premier League. In the end, relying on Onana's outstanding performance, they "only" lost 58 goals. Varane left the team, Maguire, Lindelof and Casemiro were not reused, and Manchester United had to spend a lot of money to rebuild the defensive structure. Yoro's value lies in the future, and De Ligt and Mazrao (including Ugarte) are the firefighters that Ten Hag is looking forward to.

Manchester United's lineup depth can already cope with the requirements of multi-line operations.

Young newcomers from football powers have considerable combat power and growth space. Yoro and Zirkzee are obviously new players who meet Ratcliffe's expectations and are also puzzles that can implement Ten Hag's will. Manchester United has greatly improved its efficiency in recruiting players, and the work of clearing redundant staff has also been effective. Although Greenwood and Martial have been sent away, there are still Hoylen and Rashford who can play the No. 9 position. Manchester United still took Zirkzee under this circumstance, which shows that Ten Hag is not satisfied with the current level of frontcourt organization and is ready to continue to play with tactical kaleidoscopes (changing the formation to double strikers).

From the preseason to the Community Shield, Onana has been practicing the spirit of adventurism, and Manchester United will play very aggressively in the new season.

[Adventurous football is reasonable, Teng Shuai is desperate]

"In the new season, our backcourt organization ability will improve, and I will take a lot of risks!" Thanks to the training of the new goalkeeper coach Jelle Tenruvelar, Onana is more confident in his footwork and couldn't help "leaking" military secrets during his trip to the United States.

Ten Hag has created a Dutch gang, and the team members are all from the Netherlands. Jelle Tenruvelar and Van Nistelrooy will play an important role.

By pressing high to regain the ball and patiently organizing the attack from the backcourt, the football philosophy that Ten Hag advocates is very similar to Guardiola. The Dutch coach has been promoting the concept of "advanced football" since the first day he came to the Theatre of Dreams. Later, due to the substandard players in multiple positions, Manchester United had to adopt a curling strategy in many games. Yoro's injury does not seem to affect Ten Hag's plan. The central axis composed of Onana, Lisandro Martinez, Menou and Zirkzee is responsible for the smooth implementation of the new tactics.

Defeating Glasgow Rangers and Real Betis, but losing to Rosenborg, Arsenal and Liverpool, Manchester United had a mediocre record in the pre-season, with only one clean sheet in five games. Yoro was hospitalized for injury just after joining the team, Mazraoui and De Ligt missed the pre-season preparations, and Ten Hag's plan to rely on new players to rebuild the defense is uncertain. For the time being, Manchester United can only win by scoring one more goal than their opponents. Zirkzee needs to adapt to the atmosphere of the Premier League as soon as possible, while Ganacho, Menou and Hoylen need to continue to improve. Amad Diallo, who performed well in the preseason and the Community Shield, is expected to become a surprise weapon on the Red Devils' front line.

[Summary]

"Manchester City gives me a great sense of security. They will not fire you because of the results." Pellegrini recently expressed his reluctance to leave his old club in an interview. Guardiola's work is enviable. This tactical master can lay out the blueprint completely according to his personal will and lead the players to explore the unknown space in the tactical field.

When he coached Ajax, Ten Hag built two strong teams in four years. These young players were invincible in the Eredivisie and also played their worth after switching to the Champions League. After coming to the Premier League, although Ten Hag failed to replicate his successful experience in the Eredivisie, he did not succumb under the pressure of public opinion. The "five-year plan" that impressed the Manchester United interviewer was already halfway through. The management team with Ratcliffe as the core had no intention of wasting their patience. Ten Hag decided to rely on the Dutch gang and "advanced football" to make a last-ditch effort. The courage and determination of this adventurer deserve praise.