Vincent Kompany insists Manchester City will revert to their usual attacking approach when they face Crystal Palace on Sunday, so long as they do not ‘overthink’ the crunch clash at Selhurst Park.
City are second in the Premier League table with a game in hand on Liverpool and know that they will be crowned champions if they win all of their remaining fixtures.
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Sunday could be a crucial day in the title race, however, with City visiting Palace before Liverpool host Chelsea - coincidentally the same set of fixtures that helped turn the 2013-14 season on its head.
Goal understands that City boss Pep Guardiola prioritised Sunday’s game over the midweek Champions League quarter-final first leg against Tottenham, as he knows that there will be no second chances should his side slip up in any of their league games.
Guardiola also sent his side out to keep things tight against Spurs, an uncharacteristically circumspect approach designed to ensure his side did not concede so many goals that the tie would be over before Wednesday’s return at the Etihad Stadium.
Kompany admits that City adopted a one-off approach, but says they will be back to their attacking best for the rest of the season.
“I don’t expect that we will ever see a non-familiar City again before the end of the season,” the Belgian told Goal and DAZN. “That’s it now, the one game that we could have afforded to lose is done. Now it’s all about every single time preparing well, relaxing and going into the game and doing what you know to do best.
“It’s cliched to say but every game is going to be a final, but it doesn’t mean that because it’s a final that you have to overthink it too much. We’re going to look at the strengths and weaknesses of the opponent, probably base a plan on those factors and then make sure on the day as a team, not just as individuals, that we turn up and play well, and that’s the key to getting these wins and trophies over the line, if we can.
“I just feel that this game… the big mistake would be to overthink it. We are a good team, preparing well, if we do that we will create chances and the only thing that stands in the way of you winning a game when you’re creating chances is the form of the day or bad luck, but that should still be the key to us approaching that game.”
Kompany’s repeated references to ‘overthinking’ the game against Palace perhaps stems from the fall-out to City’s 1-0 defeat at Spurs, given Guardiola was once again accused of tinkering with his starting line-up in a big Champions League game only for it to lead to a defeat.
Sources close to the City boss have told Goal that another part of his plan for the game was to keep some of his key players fit for upcoming league fixtures, with City also facing Tottenham in the league next weekend, before a trip to Old Trafford four days later.
And Kompany says he can appreciate why his manager took a different approach in midweek, even if he is already relishing City's tricky run-in.
“Ultimately you’re playing against a good team that you’re going to face three times,” he said of the run of games against Spurs. “I do think there’s a different depth to that fixture than maybe the other ones, because you face a team three times, is it realistic to think that approaching the game the same way three times is going to give you victory? I don’t know, but I can see why it’s a more difficult game to manage.
“But this one is now, Selhurst Park, it’s a one-off against a good team, we have everything to play for and that makes me more confident in the team. I like this situation, I like it when our backs are against the wall and have to perform, I feel a certain level of calmness in that.”
