KingslandBarge I think from his POV he is probably telling the owners he wants and will need to rotate but still don't have good enough personnel on the bench to trust.

He probably have seen enough from limited viewing to know the fringe players he has at his disposal is good enough for a top 4 emergency job but not good enough to keep up with the Citeh Machine

Our January fixtures are really a horrible piece of work. Can't see us coping without Jesus

      Clrnc Our January fixtures are really a horrible piece of work. Can't see us coping without Jesus

      I don't get this.

      I understand that we're all gutted that Jesus is out as he's been one of our best players but fundamentally, the way we play isn't reliant on him or any one player. With Eddie, we'll miss the contribution in the build-up but we probably gain more threat in the penalty area. All in all, it's not ideal but I think we have enough attacking potential within the team.

          Don Pacifico All in all, it's not ideal but I think we have enough attacking potential within the team.

          And if Eddie gets a knock or a red card? We're way too short up top.

              Coombs

              Then Martinelli plays centrally.

              The reason we have a squad is so that we have players who can fill in. It's also why Arteta has prioritised players who are positionally flexible.

                Don Pacifico I don't get this.

                Don't think we've seen the deficit yet, playing West Ham. Jesus is statistically the top defensive forward in the league, as well as persistently terrifying defences and dragging players out of position with his threat on the ball. Also very crafty at set pieces.

                Could be that we won't miss him, but I think it'll be rather obvious versus an organised defence.

                    Burnwinter

                    Perhaps - for the record, my perspective isn't coloured by the WH match as I've said the same thing the last couple of weeks.

                    That being said, in response to your specific point I think it's worth remembering how much pressing the whole front line were doing against West Ham, to the point that in the second half it was notable how quickly we won the ball back. Of course Jesus has been a massive contributor in this regard but it's also a strategy deployed across the team, many of whom are also pretty proficient at it too.

                      Yes, not so much that your perspective is coloured by West Ham, as that beating West Ham tells us very little. We all had that chalked as a win even with Jesus injured I reckon.

                      I agree with you to a point, even in the last match, the willingness and capability of Martinelli and Saka to step up, press, terrorise defences and score was not just evident, but proven. And no one could say we've relied on Jesus for goals …

                      We shouldn't fall into the trap of counting one player twice (Martinelli) just because he could play multiple positions. Even with Mudryk, we're short up front as long as Jesus is out (and even if he comes back on time, can we really just chuck him in to a Europa semi-final?).

                      Brighton (A)
                      Barcodes (H)
                      [Oxford (A)]
                      Spuds (A)
                      Mancs (H)
                      Everton (A)

                      Get through this with more than 10 points and we winning this league.

                        banduan

                        We will be basically at halfway point of the league. City are still to do one of those ten game winning streaks

                            Claudius Don't forget City had many many late winners at the start of the season undeserved. They are very vulnerable this year

                              Cheering on Chelsea, Spurs and United in the next few weeks will require a long shower afterwards.

                              Our next five are pretty tasty too in fairness - Newcastle (H), Spurs (A), United (H), Everton (A), Brentford (H). Exciting/pant wetting

                              January will pretty much be where the league is won or lost (unless both teams win all the fixtures)

                                Clrnc If that happens, that match on the 15th Feb becomes our biggest since that United game in 04/05. It’s a big if though.

                                    James That's how I have seen it all along too. The head to head might decide where the title is headed this season.

                                        Rohit The game felt huge at the time, which feels odd now considering Chelsea won the league by 12 points haha. Maybe I’m forgetting it meant more in terms of how that first meeting went at Old Trafford.

                                          City’s run of fixtures over the next few weeks look tough too

                                          To me City just haven't consistently looked menacing this season. They may go on a run anytime, they have so much quality but we have just showed better balance. We are similar in terms of GD too which is at times a fair indicator of 'luck'.

                                            Rohit We are similar in terms of GD too which is at times a fair indicator of 'luck'.

                                            Clearest indicator of how far we’ve come really, as we were hovering at just above + number majority of last season.

                                            It’s remarkable really how much our shot data etc. has improved in a year also. Im pretty confident that the Leeds game is the only one this season where the opposition has had more shots than us in a fixture. We were mid-table fodder in those numbers a couple of seasons ago.