Man City are achieving what Pep Guardiola worried was impossible
Manchester City wrapped up their third Premier League title in four years by the beginning of May, yet there was restlessness at the club.
Pep Guardiola used an extensive interview ahead of the Champions League final to talk about the need to refresh his squad. "You have to shake, you have to move," he said. "With the same guys, it is almost impossible.
A glaring misreading of Harry Kane's situation left plenty of egg on City faces though, a number of moves away from the club never materialised, and while they did break the British transfer record to sign Jack Grealish for £100m it was widely accepted that they hadn't done the shake-up that they set out to do in the squad.
Guardiola said this week that the only alternative to finding a solution was to sit in a chair and cry about not getting a striker, but on Saturday it was Graham Potter that may as well have wept after becoming the latest to come unstuck against this remarkable team.
Brighton kicked off this game in fourth, having conceded just five goals in eight games; City put three past them in 31 minutes, and the scoreline didn't remotely flatter them.
With Phil Foden leading the line and Bernardo Silva pulling the ball and everyone else on a string, the Blues were simply unstoppable as they bludgeoned the home goal and countered clinically to devastating effect. Having inflicted Chelsea's only defeat of the season and matched Liverpool in a pulsating game at Anfield, this was the latest statement victory from a team that is in outstanding form.
Of course, this set-up is not new for this season. City played without a recognised striker for much of last season with Sergio Aguero injured and Gabriel Jesus out of form, with considerable success as they made their first ever Champions League final.