Manchester City: Evolving to Win Ugly
Trying to spot weakness in this Manchester City side has become a futile exercise. If there is a crack, it’s hairline. Andree Jeglertz hasn’t torn anything up tactically, but he has rewired the way this group thinks – and that might be the most dangerous shift of all.
Under previous regimes, title talk felt almost taboo, something to be swerved until the final straight. Under Jeglertz, it’s painted on the walls. Literally. The Women’s Super League trophy is no longer a distant ambition, it’s the baseline. At a club with City’s resources, he argues, how could it be anything else?
The tools have always been there: technical security, patterns of play, depth of talent. That alone doesn’t guarantee medals; football’s charm lies in its refusal to always reward the best-equipped. But that tension is precisely what is driving this City squad to stretch themselves beyond aesthetics, to find new ways to win when their preferred script is ripped up.
They’ve ticked off the obvious boxes. Pretty football? Routine. Threat from open play and dead balls? Constant. Goals scattered across the squad? A given. The question now circles around something less glamorous: what happens when someone stands in their way and refuses to move?
Learning to live with the ugly side
The only credible criticism of this near-faultless side is how they cope when opponents drag them into a fight. When the spaces close, when the rhythm breaks, when Jeglertz’s idealism runs into a brick wall. Do City possess a Plan B that survives contact with the very best?
Their scruffy, hard-earned 2-1 win at London City Lionesses offered the clearest answer yet. It was not a performance to frame, but it was one to remember.
“The way we won it, it was not our best performance in any way. But we won using a different style,” says Mary Fowler, who set up the decisive goal. There was no attempt to dress it up. City suffered. They bent. They blocked.
“All the girls knew the shift they would have to put in. There were loads of chances created against us but we put bodies on the line. We saved opportunities. Sometimes those kinds of wins feel deflating but we should actually celebrate it more.
“It was such a big shift for us to have to hold onto a win. It’s a great mentality to keep belief until the bitter end. This group should be proud of that.”
That afternoon in Bromley, a fortnight ago, was the first full test of this new edge. Late last season there were hints – the shock defeat to Brighton, the narrow escape against Liverpool – moments where control slipped but the title charge stayed on track. The true examination, though, always comes after success. The season after the trophy is lifted is when champions either evolve or get picked apart.
This City side is choosing to evolve.
Lauren Hemp called it “winning ugly” last weekend. That phrase has never really belonged to Manchester City or their manager. It has belonged to others, most notably the Chelsea side they face next.
“It’s not our intention to win games that way,” Fowler admits. “It always feels nicer when we have won in a way that feels comfortable. But being able to win ugly shows another side to this team. We aren’t going to give up, we won’t stop fighting for momentum and that one moment that can decide a game.
“That is something we showed in parts last season, we scored a lot of goals late in games. Whether it’s an addition, or it’s something we haven’t had to use that often, I think it’s a great quality to have and to recognise. It’s good for confidence.”
Learning from Chelsea, not copying them
For years, Chelsea under Emma Hayes perfected the art City are now flirting with. They were relentless, almost machine-like, in their refusal to be derailed. Performances varied, outcomes rarely did. If the football wasn’t flowing, the will to win took over. That is how dynasties are built.
City have started to echo that mentality without trying to mimic it. As Fowler puts it, they still “love playing beautiful football” but accept that sometimes you have to scrap your way through 90 minutes. The plan to dominate with the ball remains, yet there is now a safety net for days when the pitch, the opponent or the occasion won’t allow for fluency.
“Just because we have a plan to play a nice style doesn’t mean it will always work,” Fowler says. “We have to have a fallback quality, even if it’s messy. It’s about getting stuff done.”
That pragmatism could prove vital this weekend. Chelsea and City are the only unbeaten sides left standing. The margins will be thin, the pressure suffocating. Matches like this rarely unfold as the coaches draw them up.
“We’re in a great place but we’re fuelled to want to perform even better,” Fowler insists.
They will need to be. City have won just one of their last nine visits to Chelsea, losing six of them. They walk into a stadium where history offers little comfort and face a team that boasts the best shots-per-90 record in WSL history. It is a brutal test of their new resilience.
“It’s a big game and a great match-up. Some wins have lacked performance so far but we have all the tools we need,” Fowler says. The message is calm, but the stakes are not.
Comfortable in the chaos
This season has already forced Jeglertz’s players to suffer. The comeback against Arsenal in October was another illustration of their growing steel, a night when structure gave way to spirit and City still found a way. They have conceded twice as many goals as Chelsea so far, yet they sit two points clear at the top.
That statistic tells its own story. This is not a side gliding through the campaign untouched; it is one that has learned to live with turbulence and still land on its feet.
To be comfortable in the uncomfortable is new territory for Manchester City. It might also be the quality that makes these reigning champions harder to shift than ever.
