Pep Guardiola takes Manchester City one step closer to winning the EFL Cup in four consecutive years

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer built up Manchester United’s quarter-final at Everton by admitting a desperation to lift any trophy. The same cannot be said of Manchester City.

Not in terms of recent history, anyway, and that one sentence delivered by Solskjaer symbolises the shift in power up in this part of the world. City have had their heads patted for collecting five of the last seven League Cups but what some others would not give for just the one.

It is an inferior competition. Obviously it is. One that Pep Guardiola even suggested binning altogether not so long ago, but while that silverware sits on the shelf, he will always scrap to grab hold. They aspire to become the first team since an all-conquering 1980s Liverpool to win this in four consecutive seasons.

Pep Guardiola (above) wants to win the EFL cup and rack up numbers for legacy purposes

Guardiola wants to rack up the numbers for legacy purposes, for purely selfish reasons, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. This year, though, winning in the last eight has a little added significance given their uncharacteristic Premier League travails. It offers impetus, of which there has not been much recently. A night to face Arsenal; obliging Arsenal.

City’s manager shifted the discourse from his attackers lacking rhythm to lacking momentum over the weekend – when despite a creditable victory at Southampton they still squandered plenty of chances – and by that he presumably meant muscle memory in front of goal.

They have been deficient in end product recently, scoring more than twice in a domestic game just once since September. That unwanted record was broken emphatically – eventually, anyway.

He wants Manchester City to be the first team since 1980 to win the cup four years in a row

Manchester City beat Arsenal 4-1 in the EFL Cup on Tuesday December 22 (above)

Gabriel Jesus had a first goal in 10 hours of football within three minutes, although then missed a glaring opportunity when this was 1-1. A first half to reflect City’s season: all of the ball, wasted opportunities, daft goal conceded. Rinse and repeat. Unlike previous blips, they reacted.

‘Goals are something special,’ Guardiola said while rubbing thumb and index finger. ‘It’s the touch, the fluidity. We are closer to having it when we’re winning games.’

Closer does not necessarily mean close and it is only through sheer graft that City will emerge from this sticky spell in the final third. 

‘We couldn’t score the clear chances and when that happens you always suffer,’ Guardiola said at Southampton. The same could have been said of their trip to the Emirates for longer than they may care to admit, in a cup he always insists on treating with immense respect.

Guardiola does involve the youngsters in the earlier rounds – Liam Delap, Cole Palmer, Tommy Doyle and Taylor Harwood-Bellis have all featured this year – but the kids are rarely seen in the latter stages.

Gabriel Jesus had a first goal in 10 hours of football within three minutes against Arsenal

This was a chance for those on the periphery to stake a claim. Many did not, particularly centre half Aymeric Laporte, whose positional error for Alexandre Lacazette’s equaliser increased the stock of John Stones again. 

Phil Foden did, however, with a peerless dart forward from a central berth and deft clip over the hapless Runar Alex Runarsson. Those are the sort of moments that young man can produce when afforded the break to express himself.

City needed it at the time, ahead only because of Runarsson’s howler minutes prior. Yet, as Guardiola has remarked, victories of any kind will enhance their game in the coming weeks, and this competition has given them lots of joy down the years. 

Fans douse each disappointing result in either the league or Europe with irony: ‘We’ll always have the Carabao.’ This year, progression feels that bit more important. More therapy than legacy, but important all the same.