1) Guardiola has some thinking to do
For Pep Guardiola the World Cup may have arrived at an apposite moment. Manchester City could have beaten Brentford at the weekend but they lost, something they narrowly avoided when finding a way to beat Brighton, Leicester and Fulham in their previous Premier League outings. A six-week break for Qatar allows the manager to examine the team forensically and understand what is required to refresh a mode of play that is lacking the usual relentless pass-and-move sequences. “People go to their national team, they will be focused, it is a dream for them, it’s a World Cup. [The staff] have time to reflect: what we are doing well, what we could do better. After the first [league] game back – we will see,” said Guardiola. “The Premier League is difficult but we are going to try to come back good and fight for that.” Jamie Jackson
