Man City 'would like a four-week break'

The November international break could not have come at a better time.

International action is often dreaded. But, this time around, we would like a four-week break as opposed to just two. The past four matches have been nothing short of exhausting and hugely frustrating.

Manchester City's showing at Tottenham in the Carabao Cup was deserving of better, but the best team ultimately won. Bournemouth was by far and away a deserved win for the Cherries. The first half against Sporting in the Champions League and, most recently, against Brighton in the Premier League was a reflection of the dire fitness situation that City find themselves in.

Pep Guardiola's makeshift line-ups, particularly in defence, have meant they could only compete for 45 minutes in their past two matches, following up an encouraging first half with a calamitous second.

Kyle Walker, who is badly out of form, followed up last week's criticism in this column with multiple lapses of concentration once again, while Rico Lewis appears overworked and heavily fatigued given his responsibilities across several positions.

Teenager Jahmai Simpson-Pusey has emerged as a strong future talent. Excellent on the ball, composed in finding passes, but unfortunately has found himself exposed by a lack of a competent defensive midfield.

There is very little in the way of the necessary legs in City's more advanced midfield roles too, and Guardiola is likely to have been left wondering how he can solve such an issue given the age of his solutions to Rodri's absence in Mateo Kovacic and Ilkay Gundogan.

The attack certainly cannot hide from criticism either and, particularly in the past two matches, City should have been ahead by a clear margin come the interval had chances been taken.

To keep everyone optimistic, City do remain in a strong position in Europe and the league, while some of their most senior and key names are on the verge of returns, namely Ruben Dias.

In the absence of a true leader at the heart of defence, the Portugal international could prove to be the ultimate difference upon his return, and Guardiola will be hoping for the likes of Kevin de Bruyne and Jack Grealish to step up their own responsibilities almost immediately having been afforded extended recovery periods.

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