Manchester City are beginning to look slow and old as Brighton showed at the Amex Stadium

Manchester City slumped to their fourth consecutive defeat as they went down 2-1 to Brighton at the Amex Stadium. Erling Haaland’s first-half opener was cancelled out by Joao Pedro and Matt O’Riley’s second-half goals. Fabian Hurzeler’s side deserved their victory. City dominated the first half but Brighton took control of the game in the second half. Coming out of the game you do get the sense that Manchester City’s squad is beginning to look old, slow and jaded. That has stood out in each of City’s last four defeats.

It must be said that the injuries to the Manchester City squad haven’t helped matters. It has forced players to play more often than they usually would have. That is an inescapable fact of events surrounding City at the moment. But there is something else striking about Manchester City’s play at the moment. The champions look to be unable to sustain more than a half of quality play at present.

You only have to look at the ages and battles previously fought by Manchester City’s midfielders. Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne have all been warriors for the world champions. But today, particularly in the case of De Bruyne and Bernardo, they looked a step slower than usual. Kevin De Bruyne is on the comeback trail from an injury. But he isn’t a young player anymore. Bernardo looks tired as a heavy workload has caught up to him. Gundogan played well until he was substituted but he looks short of a gallop against young and hungrier opponents. Perhaps that is a sign of age catching up to the Manchester City legend.

At the back City have a similar problem. Kyle Walker looks to have lost a yard of pace. Evidently, he has barely trained all season. But the signs are there that he is beginning to decline as a player. Walker has been a warrior for Manchester City but Father Time waits for no one. It will be interesting to see if Walker’s game picks up after the international break.

It must be said that it is only 11 games into the 24/25 season. Also, injuries have ravaged the Manchester City squad this season. But it does look like City are beginning to show their age. Pep Guardiola’s side has been on top of the English game for the past 7 years. 6 Premier League titles over that period and winning every other major trophy along the way is a testament to that fact. But eventually eras end and Father Time catches up to every player. Is that what we are witnessing now? Time will reveal the answer to that question but the warning signs are there that a rebuild of the City squad is coming. It’s just a matter of when it will occur rather than it being postponed based on the past four games Manchester City have played.