After picking up just three points from a possible nine heading into the international break, Manchester City certainly aren't where they would want and expect to be at this early stage of the Premier League season.
Despite a poor season for their high standards last year, City did finish the league campaign on a 10 game unbeaten run and seemed to be looking like the side that won four titles in a row. But after already losing two games out of three, Pep Guardiola's side are clearly struggling for one reason or another.
Whether there has been too many changes, both on the pitch or on the sideline with Pep Lijnders and Kolo Toure joining Guardiola's staff ; or if a very short pre-season has led to City not being up to speed in terms of match fitness and sharpness.
Or is it a wider problem with the system and an era of dominance coming to an end.
Too many changes?
With key players such as Kevin De Bruyne and Ederson leaving, as well as Assistant Manager Juanmo Lillo leaving the club, it has been a summer of change both on and off the field at Manchester City.
Despite a clear drop off in form for the aforementioned De Bruyne and Ederson as well as others who have left such as Akanji, Gundogan and Kyle Walker, these players were mainstays in the treble winning side and have that experience and winning mentality which only the elite have.
Following these departures City have brought in some younger talent in Rayan Cherki, Rayan Ait-Nouri and even James Trafford who seemed to be the number one until Gianluigi Donnarumma was brought in on deadline day. These three despite having clear talent and potential all have many flaws at their young age and are far from the finished article.
None of them have won anything at the highest level either and so they aren't replacing that winning mentality and knowhow in the biggest of games.
Dutch international Tijjani Reijnders is much more experienced having played in the Serie A and Champions League for multiple years, also winning Midfielder of the season in the Italian league just last year. However on a team aspect he only has one major trophy to his name, the Supercoppa Italiana with AC Milan.
So in terms of a winning mentality and drive, Donnarumma is the one who will be hoping to bring that across from PSG to add to a much younger City side than we have seen in previous years.
He will be hoping to help the mentality of the side and the results which have been poor due to the mistakes being made on the field as Rodri alluded to after the defeat to Brighton at the Amex Stadium.
Rodri: "We have to adjust many things, not only on the pitch. I think outside many things have to improve, but we're a team. When we lose, when we win, we're all together, and we'll find a solution 100%..." [via @ManCity]
— City Xtra (@City_Xtra) September 2, 2025
A short pre-season
On the back of the Club World Cup, Pep Guardiola have his side a long break as he usually does and so his side only had one official pre-season game, against Palermo, with one other played against Preston North End at City's training ground.
As mentioned, Guardiola does like to bring his players back as late as possible so they are feeling fresher in the business end of the season, with there being lots of changes, many of the players haven't had the time to gel together and get rid of any rust built up from their time away from football.
So for City fans they will be hoping that the short pre-season is the answer to the problems and that after the international break the players will be sharper and fitter and ready to bounce back from the poor results against Tottenham and Brighton.
A decline in quality players
Over the last few years City have let go of high quality players such as Kevin De Bruyne, Riyad Mahrez and Julian Alvarez without really replacing any of them properly or with the quality required to maintain the heights that these individuals got the club too.
Despite spending a lot of money in 2025, much of it has gone on younger, project style players who need time to adapt and grow as players before becoming the standard required to be challenging for the Premier League and Champions League like City are expected to do every year.
Also, many of the players who remain at the club from the most successful era such as Bernardo Silva, Ruben Dias and John Stones, have all dropped their level due to fitness or getting older and some like Dias just haven't performed as well as they did a few years ago.
So between the players that are coming in and the ones left from the previous seasons, their is just a clear decline in quality and output in terms of goals and assists compared to what is needed to be performing to the standard that City were at before.
The poor start may just be an accurate representation of where this current group of players are at, which is a mix of new and old crop trying to gel together and live up to Pep's high standards of competing on all fronts every season.
The beginning of the end?
Like all great era's, they sadly have to come to an end eventually and some are suggesting that this could be the case for Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
Guardiola is a manager who will always play his way, as he should with his track record, but in years gone by Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger and even Sir Alex Ferguson realised that their style won't work anymore in the league or with the group of players they have got.
"I will never ever change my beliefs... I love to pass the ball. A thousand million boring, boring passes. I love it."
— Hayters TV (@HaytersTV) August 30, 2025
Safe to say that Pep Guardiola will not be changing his principles any time soon😅💪
Watch in FULL🔥👇https://t.co/7VxV4PE8HB pic.twitter.com/JpMDvOQZPG
So as Pep won't change his ways and his principles, if the players he currently has cannot perform to the level he is asking them too, then this may be the final year of the Guardiola era and no matter how it ends it would still be the most dominant era since Sir Alex Ferguson.
City fans will be hoping this isn't the case and it is way too early into the season to suggest the Pep era is done, but asking questions due to such a decline in their last 12 months is completely acceptable.
Any other manager who only won one game in 13 would be rightly questioned, but Pep has built something so big that he has the right to a poor period as he usually bounces back from any adversity.
But if this season were to go similarly to last year then it wouldn't be surprising to see Pep either walk at the end of the year and close his story with City after an extremely successful decade.
