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Pep Guardiola has had his Manchester City side purring and beating all comers in the Premier League this season and the strange part is, the players he bought in the summer transfer window have not been as prominent as expected in the squad.
Defender Kyle Walker and goalkeeper Ederson have been the most significant additions from this past summer in City's record-breaking run, while Benjamin Mendy (knee injury), Danilo and Bernardo Silva have all had bit-part roles in the squad.
The bulk of the great work has been done by some who were previously considered to be liabilities or expensive flops, all of whom were expected to feature less often this season.
Instead, though, these players have embraced Guardiola's tactical ideas and are delivering quality performances on a weekly basis.
Here are five of the most improved Citizens this season:
#5 Fernandinho
The understated one in the starting midfield trio that has helped Manchester City sweep all before them aside in the Premier League, the Brazilian ace has - alongside David Silva and Kevin de Bruyne - formed the league's best midfield pairing.
With his intelligent positioning, clean tackling, a keen sense of what is going on all around him and the ability to get stuck in if need be, he has been the cog that keeps the City wheel turning and has been ever-present in the matchday squads put out by Pep Guardiola.
Fernandinho has been well worth the £34m fee that City paid to sign him from Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk in 2013. Brilliant under Manuel Pellegrini, he partnered well alongside Yaya Touré to help power the side to Premier League glory in 2014.
Under Guardiola's tutelage, he has become an evolved and better version of himself with minimum effort being expended on running around the pitch. Instead, he has begun relying more on his positional awareness to snuff out opposition attacks or start forward movements for his side.
In a style reminiscent of Sergio Busquets, Fernandinho has evolved into the archetypal Guardiola central midfielder, a player who combines both the most destructive and positive elements of mid elements of football to help move his team to another level.
#4 Fabian Delph
The best word to describe Delph’s performances this season has been miraculous. This is a player who everyone expected to be sold or loaned out as it did not seem that he had a role to play in the new look team Pep was fashioning.
After a rumoured move to Stoke City broke down, Pep decided to keep the Englishman and former Aston Villa captain.
Delph was expected to play second fiddle to Fernandinho and ?lkay Gündo?an in central midfield but an injury to the team’s only recognized left back; Mendy meant that a slot in the first team opened up, an opportunity which Delph has taken with both hands.
While it is not clear to outsiders if Pep had always had it in mind to play Delph as a left back this season, his decision not to buy a second left back was viewed with alarm by Citizens, an alarm that went up several notches following Mendy’s injury.
Delph has been exceptional since he came into the team and is a strong candidate to fill the left back position in the Premier League’s Team of the Season.
He has played in 13 straight games in the league and has one goal. His defending has been characterized by his calmness in distribution, tenacity in tackling and ability to come into midfield and give the team an extra body in the middle.
Apart from the error which led to a goal in the Manchester Derby, he has been near faultless in his defensive duties and is a testament to Guardiola’s genius in developing players.
#3 Leroy Sané
The flying German is definitely a candidate for the Player of the Year award, such has been his flying start to the season.
Last season, the incredibly talented winger had a forgettable first season in England, struggling hard to adapt after a £37m move from Schalke 04.
It was only in the latter part of the second half of the season that he began to pick some form, though even at that, he was still very inconsistent.
The benefit of a summer break from football and a full pre-season workout with his club coach seems to have brought out a different dimension to Sané’s game.
He is now more direct and confident always willing to take players on and either deliver a great cross or go for goal himself.
His defensive contributions have also been very good as he seems to have a good relationship with Fabian Delph in ensuring the safety of City’s left side.
The German international has scored 6 times and made 8 assists in the Premier League and has shown a level of scary talent that only genuine world class players can provide at a tender age.
#2 Raheem Sterling
“He runs funny”
“He shoots like a woman”
These and much more have been criticisms that have been flung at young Raheem, criticism that is being to look silly given the England international’s sterling performances this season.
Last season, in Guardiola’s first year in England, Sterling played quite a number of games but was often substituted or played no part in games last season. The transfer fee spent to bring him to Manchester; £50m was judged by fans and the media alike.
However, Guardiola who had seen the potential in the boy decided to work on the young English man’s game and the results have been there for all to see.
Sterling is now stronger, faster and more intelligent and has been a great surprise to fans and the media alike who had been dismissive of the young winger.
Now more than ever, he is making better, more intelligent runs, helping the team to defend by harrying and pressing defenders and taking responsibility by scoring late goals to win precious points for the team.
With 11 goals in 16 league games, Sterling is now as big a goal threat as the pairing of strikers; Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus have found it difficult dislodging him due to his sensational form.
#1 Nicolás Otamendi
The Argentinian centre-back came to England having built up a reputation as a force of nature in La Liga. The red-bearded defender was superb for Valencia and was signed by former manager Manuel Pellegrini for a reported initial fee of £28.5m.
He was erratic, error-prone and susceptible to a rush of blood moment ever so often that he became a figure of fun among rival fans who saw him as the embodiment of what was termed as Manchester City’s wasteful spending habits.
His first season under Guardiola’s tutelage wasn’t much better as, after a promising start, his performances alongside that of the entire team dropped.
Now in his third season in England and second under the serial trophy winner that is Guardiola, Otamendi is looking like the defender that was consistently rated as the best centre back in the league during his time in Spain.
His tackling and decision making is much improved as he no longer dives into tackles but defends more intelligently.
Given the injuries to his central defensive partners; he has shone brilliantly irrespective of whosoever he has been paired with and can make a legitimate claim to being the best centre-back currently in the league.
His ball distribution has become much better, he is still as committed and energetic as ever and has added goals (4 so far, this season).
It is in Otamendi that we see the best example of Guardiola’s player improvement techniques.
