Losing is never nice. We all know that. We saw it in our players when Emi Buendia curled home Villa’s 95th minute winner on Saturday, as they collectively dropped to their knees, beating the turf in frustration. But losing is part of football and it makes the wins that bit sweeter. As down as the players and fans may have been, focusing on the next game in the knowledge that we remain two points clear at the top of the Premier League is where the collective mindset should be.

Our schedule for the next couple of weeks allows for reflection time. Brugge away in the Champions League won’t be easy, but given our perfect record in the competition so far, the match is not as pivotal as it might have been. There is a perfect opportunity for the likes of Zubimendi, Rice and Saka to rest here. Ideally, I would like to see Kepa given a game in goal too. Then on Saturday evening, it’s Wolves away. They have looked more competitive since Rob Edwards arrived, but remain winless. Given our imperious record at The Emirates, that looks set to be as straightforward a Premier League game can be. Following that game, we get a free midweek at long last. Not since August has that luxury been afforded. Games will come thick and fast thereafter, bouncing between weekend and midweek from Everton to Palace to Brighton to Villa to Bournemouth to Liverpool and so on. Hopefully by that Everton game, we can have almost everyone full fit and sharp again as despite getting some attacking players back on the pitch recently, their minutes have needed to be managed.

One area of concern that I feel needs addressing is the Eze left-wing experiment. It didn’t go well against Villa, with little offered in the final third before his half-time withdrawal. Meanwhile, Eze was suspect defensively as Matty Cash snuck in behind him at the back post to open the scoring. Eze can play that position, but I think work must be done on the training pitch to make it feel more natural. For example, when we attack, it should be in a 3-2-4-1 shape with Saka, Odegaard, Eze and Calafiori as the four, allowing Eze to drift into the left half space that he occupied last season for Palace where he had Tyrick Mitchell bombing forward outside him. Defensively in that 4-4-2 shape we have become familiar with, Eze needs to replicate the tigerish defensive work that Saka, Madueke, Trossard and Martinelli are capable of. All four of those wide players protect their full-back excellently and give us a platform for defensive stability. If those two areas cannot be fixed, then Eze cannot play that position and should remain in the number 10 role. What we may see against Wolves is Zubimendi/Rice as the deepest of the midfield three and both Odegaard and Eze ahead of him with Saka and Martinelli/Madueke on the left. Arteta used that setup at home to a struggling West Ham side in October and this might be a similar opportunity to do so. Tactical flexibility will remain at the forefront of Arteta’s mind as he navigates the busy schedule while managing player fitness and availability.

So there we are. Still two points clear and with a favourable fixture on Saturday in the league, while City visit Real Madrid on Wednesday and then Crystal Palace on Sunday. There is a scenario where things turn on their head this coming weekend and we extend our lead back to five points again. That is the nature of the fixture list and the twists and turns of a Premier League season. Nevertheless, we should focus on ourselves and winning our matches first and whatever happens elsewhere is secondary. COYG