Manchester City’s win over Chelsea had all the markings of a title-winning side and Pep Guardiola is leading the charge
THE tell-tale signs are there.
There is a confidence, a swagger, a twinkle in the eye when managers jabber away after a win as significant as this one.
They stick around a bit longer for post-match interviews, playing to the gallery as they explain in great detail how they outwitted the champions of England.
To be fair to Pep Guardiola, he had certainly earned the right to do it.
Snippy Pep, the moody, menacing, snarling individual who was so vexed with questions about Sergio Aguero on Friday, suddenly became the most charming man on the planet.
That is what three points at Chelsea, defending their Premier League crown under Antonio Conte, means to the Spaniard.
When the guard drops, they tend to give something away.
Guardiola, one of the most successful coaches of all time, suddenly became the boss of the press conference.
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Call this a slip, but it very definitely came Tottenham’s way after they scored another avalanche of goals up at Huddersfield.
Guardiola called Spurs “the Harry Kane team”, a dismissive reference to the striker’s increasing influence around his club.
Guardiola did without his star man on Saturday because Aguero is nursing fractured ribs after his decision to visit Amsterdam on Thursday night.
Yet even without him, City were exceptional.
Guardiola has finally got to grips with English football, effortlessly combining style and substance to produce one frightening football team.
They played like champions. They celebrated like champions.
Look around this City side and there are no obvious pinch points, no obvious weaknesses.
Even John Stones, an accident waiting to happen in his first season at the Etihad, is immaculate at the heart of City’s defence.
He is turning into a player. A proper player. A Pep Guardiola type of player.
That is all that counts as City continue to evolve with this powerful, explosive group of players on the pitch.
The new City is taking shape, with captain Vincent Kompany watching on as they hurtled towards this win.
Yaya Toure, so influential in the title wins under Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini, is an unused substitute these days.
It is hard to see either of them forcing a way in. With the way City approached this teatime kick-off, they do not need them.
Clearly, they do not need to rely on them anymore.
This swashbuckling approach is the opposition’s worst nightmare to prepare for.
Conte, title winner in his first season at Stamford Bridge, did not have the answers.
He tried damn hard to come up with them, making a double substitution after Kevin De Bruyne lit up this fixture with a magnificent left-footed finish.
It pinged off his boot 67 minutes in, after he had exchanged passes with Jesus before unleashing his strike beyond Belgian compatriot Thibaut Courtois. There was no stopping it. There is no stopping City at the moment.
Guardiola’s players are maturing with every win.
Kyle Walker, who boldly claimed City must be “a nightmare” to play against, was spot on.
When they play like this, against a group of players with the pedigree of Chelsea, they are capable of anything.
The Blues are falling back on excuses, with some more lazy gripes about injuries and fixture congestion.
They were anything but hard-done-by here.
Alvaro Morata, red hot after scoring seven times since his move from Real Madrid, pulled up in the first half with a dodgy hamstring.
They were never in this, not in a way that a squad of highly motivated players would hustle their way into a game of this importance.
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Conte has complained bitterly about the 67 hours between the moment Michy Batshuayi scored the winner against Atletico Madrid and the kick-off at Stamford Bridge.
Life sure can be tough sometimes.
The reality is City are equipped for the months ahead, on a roll after another measured and masterful performance.
It was a bit much of City’s coaching staff to celebrate like they had won the title at the final whistle.
This was one game, fellas, and there are still 31 to play.
Guardiola was in the middle of all that, accepting the hugs, the cuddles and the adulation from his technical staff.
Perhaps the moment got to them, the sort of moment when they realised they are really on to something special.
They simply could not hide it.
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