When Pep Guardiola first came to the Premier League nine years ago, he intended to revolutionize how English football perceived goalkeepers. Despite Joe Hart being Manchester City`s primary choice and England`s top keeper, his inability to play effectively with his feet meant his departure was inevitable under Guardiola`s system.
Guardiola has consistently evolved his tactical philosophies, adapting principles from his time at Barcelona and Bayern Munich long before the current season. It`s challenging to envision that the manager who first stepped into the Etihad had a long-term plan to deploy four central defenders or orchestrate an attack primarily centered around the question, «Where`s Erling Haaland?» when he`s not directly involved. This isn`t a critique; rather, Guardiola`s continuous drive for innovation is precisely what solidifies his status as one of football`s greatest strategists.
Guardiola`s relentless pursuit of perfection seems to be guiding him back to his initial philosophy. Following several challenging seasons where Manchester City`s success occasionally felt independent of Ederson`s performances – with the goalkeeper often just a few poor games away from being benched – the club has completely revamped its goalkeeping unit. Ederson, widely considered the generation`s premier ball-playing keeper, is now reportedly moving to Galatasaray, with his successors identified as two of the previous season`s most impressive shot-stoppers.
Indeed, Gianluigi Donnarumma, who is reportedly close to joining City after they intervened in his contract dispute with Paris Saint-Germain, has long been recognized as a top-tier goalkeeper, excelling at preventing goals. Although the 26-year-old experienced a dip in form during the early part of last season, he, as he has often done throughout his career, perfectly timed his return to peak performance.
The Italian international delivered exceptional performances in the Champions League, potentially playing a pivotal role in Paris Saint-Germain`s victory over Arsenal in the semifinals. Remarkably, in every Champions League season he has participated in, Donnarumma has conceded fewer goals than the expected post-shot xG value of the attempts he faced. As a specialist shot-stopper, Donnarumma is undeniably among the elite, alongside goalkeepers such as Thibaut Courtois and Jan Oblak.
However, Donnarumma is not a goalkeeper known for his comfort with the ball at his feet. While even world-class keepers make errors, like Donnarumma`s costly mistake against Karim Benzema in the 2022 Champions League, he often appears uncomfortable when receiving back passes. Despite playing for a possession-heavy team, he handles the ball significantly less often than most goalkeepers, with over 20 percent fewer touches per 90 minutes compared to his predecessor. It`s clear that even with intensive coaching from Guardiola, Donnarumma will likely never possess the ability to precisely launch 60-yard passes to a striker, a skill Ederson mastered.
The same applies to James Trafford, who might understandably feel disappointed if his anticipated return from Burnley to become City`s number one results in him being a substitute behind a Yashin Trophy recipient. Trafford, after an outstanding Championship season that included 29 clean sheets in 45 matches and preventing 12.48 goals – a crucial contribution to Scott Parker`s team`s promotion – would rightly believe he earned a prominent role. Again, City`s priority was clearly a shot-stopper, even one who has previously made a noticeable error with the ball at his feet.
This shift towards prioritizing shot-stopping goalkeepers indicates a broader evolution in Guardiola`s vision for Manchester City. The team has become more adaptive, less fixated on retaining possession merely for the sake of it. Should this represent their long-term strategy, leading to more open games, a top-tier shot-stopper will be essential to manage the increased goal-scoring opportunities conceded. However, considering Guardiola`s two decades in management, his ultimate desire for absolute control remains a constant. If that fundamental principle reasserts itself, City`s decision regarding their goalkeeping choice might ultimately prove to be ill-judged.
Manchester Cityning Gianluigi Donnarummani qoʻlga kiritishga urinishi Pep Guardiola Premer-ligadagi uslubini oʻzgartirayotganini anglatadi
Pep Guardiola toʻqqiz yil oldin Premer-ligaga kelganida, ingliz jamoatchiligining darvozabonlikka boʻlgan qarashlarini inqilob qilish niyatida edi. Manchester City darvozasini Jo Hart qoʻriqlardi, ammo Angliyaning bu birinchi raqamli darvozaboni oyogʻi bilan toʻpni samarali oʻynay olmasligi, Guardiola tizimida uning ketishi muqarrar ekanligini anglatardi.
Guardiola ushbu mavsumdan ancha oldin ham Barselona va Bavariyadan olib kelgan tamoyillarini doimiy ravishda moslashtirib, taktik falsafasini rivojlantirib kelgan. Etihadda dastlab ish boshlagan murabbiy bir kun kelib oʻz himoyasida toʻrtta markaziy himoyachi bilan oʻynashni yoki hujumni `Erling Haaland ekranda koʻrinmas ekan, qolgan barcha personajlar `Haaland qani?` deb soʻrashi kerak` falsafasi asosida tashkil etishni koʻzlaganini tasavvur qilish qiyin. Bu tanqid emas; aksincha, Guardiola’ning doimiy yangilikka intilishi uni futbolning eng buyuk strateglaridan biriga aylantiradi.
Guardiola’ning mukammallikka intilishi uni boshlangʻich falsafasiga qaytarganga oʻxshaydi. Edersonning oʻyinlari uncha barqaror boʻlmagan bir necha qiyin mavsumlardan soʻng, unda darvozabon baʼzan zaxiradan ikki yoki uchta yomon oʻyinidan keyin oʻrinbosar boʻlishga yaqin turardi, City oʻzining darvozabonlik boʻlimini tubdan oʻzgartirdi. Oʻz avlodining eng yaxshi toʻp bilan oʻynaydigan darvozaboni Galatasaroyga yoʻl olmoqda, uning oʻrniga oʻtgan mavsumning eng koʻzga koʻringan ikki darvozaboni kelmoqda.
Darhaqiqat, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Parij Sen-Jermen bilan shartnoma tortishuviga City aralashganidan soʻng klubga oʻtishga yaqinlashib, ancha vaqtdan beri toʻpni darvozadan uzoq tutish boʻyicha yuqori darajadagi darvozabon sifatida tan olingan. Garchi 26 yoshli darvozabon oʻtgan mavsumning dastlabki oylarida formasi tushib ketgan boʻlsa-da, u, oʻz faoliyatida tez-tez boʻlganidek, oʻzining eng yuqori formasiga qaytish vaqtini mukammal tarzda tanladi.
Italiyalik futbolchi Chempionlar Ligasida ajoyib oʻyin koʻrsatdi, Parij Sen-Jermenning yarim finalda Arsenalni magʻlub etishida muhim rol oʻynagan boʻlishi mumkin. Hayratlanarlisi shundaki, u qatnashgan Chempionlar Ligasining har bir mavsumida Donnarumma duch kelgan zarbalarning post-shot xG (kutilgan gol) qiymatidan kamroq gol oʻtkazib yuborgan. Sof toʻpni qaytaruvchi darvozabon sifatida Donnarumma Tibo Kurtua va Yan Oblak kabi elita darvozabonlari qatorida turadi.
Biroq, Donnarumma oyoqlari bilan toʻp bilan oʻynashda oʻzini qulay his qiladigan darvozabon emas. Hatto dunyo darajasidagi darvozabonlar ham xatolarga yoʻl qoʻyishadi, xuddi Donnarumma 2022 yilgi Chempionlar Ligasida Karim Benzemaga qarshi oʻyinda qimmatli xatoga yoʻl qoʻyganidek, u toʻp unga qaytganda koʻpincha noqulay koʻrinadi. U toʻpni koʻp ushlab turadigan jamoada oʻynashiga qaramay, u boshqa darvozabonlarga qaraganda ancha kam toʻpga tegadi, yaʼni oʻrniga kelayotgan darvozabonga nisbatan 90 daqiqada 20 foizdan koʻproq kamroq. Guardiola Donnarumma texnikasi ustida qancha ishlamasin, u Ederson kabi 60 metrlik toʻpni hujumchining yugurish yoʻliga aniq uzatadigan darvozabonga ega boʻlmasligi aniq.
Xuddi shu narsa Jeyms Traffordga ham tegishli boʻlib, uning Burnleydan City`ning birinchi raqamli darvozaboni boʻlish uchun kutilgan qaytishi Yashin sovrini sohibining orqasida zaxira oʻrindigʻida qolishi bilan yakunlansa, u tushunarli tarzda xafa boʻlishi mumkin. Trafford, Chempionshipdagi ajoyib mavsumidan soʻng, 45 oʻyinda 29 ta gol oʻtkazmasdan va 12,48 ta golni qaytargani bilan – bu Skot Parker jamoasining yuqori ligaga chiqishida muhim omil boʻldi – katta lavozimga loyiq deb bilardi. Yana bir bor, Cityning ustuvorligi aniq ravishda toʻpni qaytaruvchi darvozabon boʻlgan, hattoki oyoqlari bilan toʻp bilan ishlashda oldin ham sezilarli xato qilgan boʻlsa ham.
Darvozabonni tanlashdagi bu oʻzgarish Guardiola Citydan nimani istayotganida kengroq evolyutsiyani koʻrsatadi. Jamoa koʻproq moslashuvchan boʻlib, nazoratni shunchaki saqlab qolishga unchalik qaram emas. Agar bu ularning uzoq muddatli strategiyasini ifodalasa, bu koʻproq ochiq oʻyinlarga olib kelishi mumkin, va yuqori darajadagi darvozabon berib yuborilgan gol urish imkoniyatlarini boshqarish uchun muhim boʻladi. Biroq, Guardiola’ning ikki oʻn yillik boshqaruv tajribasini hisobga olsak, uning mutlaq nazoratga boʻlgan yakuniy istagi doimiy boʻlib qoladi. Agar bu fundamental prinsip yana oʻzini koʻrsatsa, Cityning darvozabon tanlashdagi qarori oxir-oqibat notoʻgʻri boʻlib chiqishi mumkin.
