How Man City addressed key weakness to beat Liverpool to the Premier League title

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

It would be something of an understatement to say Pep Guardiola's 2021/22 Manchester City side is quite impressive. Their intense and devastating pressing, the fact that City scored 99 league goals without a striker, the technical brilliance of the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva, the fact they outplayed both Liverpool and Chelsea in all four league encounters and the resilience and character shown to bounce back from a painful Champions League exit - their list of qualities is near-endless.

However, one thing that not even the most optimistic of City fans would have predicted before the start of the season was how good City would be at set-pieces - at both ends of the pitch. READ MORE: Tangling with Sir Alex Ferguson, Pep Guardiola and the Raging Bull - the inside story of 24 years on the MEN sports desk After his side had clinched the title on the final day of the 2018/19 season with a 4-1 win away at Brighton, Guardiola was asked if his side had any weaknesses at all.

Having seen City fall behind to a header from a corner, Pep said: "I'm the tallest guy [at City], so in the set-pieces let's go to the church to pray," explaining that the defending corners and free-kicks with diminutive players like David Silva, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo left his side vulnerable.

On the evidence of their latest title-winning campaign, City no longer need divine intervention; on their way to winning a fourth Premier League title in five years, Guardiola's side became the set-piece kings.