Is the Pep Era Over? City Fall to 7/1 Prem Outsiders

When Man City thumped Wolves 4-0 on the opening weekend of the new season, many thought it signalled they were back.
After a disastrous 2024/25 campaign, which saw them finish 3rd in the league and at one stage go on an incredible run of just 1 win in 13, the hope amongst City fans was that it was nothing more than a blip and that Pep would, indeed, rally his troops and silence the critics once the new season started.

However, despite splashing £152m this summer to bring in the likes of Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki, whatever plan Pep had up his sleeve appears to have already gone out the window. With just a single win from the opening 3 games, the Pep era is, seemingly, over.

Pep is “Finished” as Arne Slot Wins August Manager of the Month
City quickly followed their opening win over Wolves with back-to-back losses against Spurs and then Brighton, looking short on ideas across both games. Pep himself doesn’t paint an inspired picture on the touchline, either, with the Spaniard now, perhaps, accepting that City are no longer top dog.

If you’ve spent any time on social media these past couple of weeks, you’ll no doubt have seen the “finished” and “washed” accusations coming Pep’s way. These accusations were already being made last season, but they’ve now gotten even worse.

The bookies have been ruthless, too, with bet365, Betfred, and William Hill all increasing City’s Premier League title odds to 7/1. Plenty of the football betting software apps on BettingTools have also, unfortunately for City fans, predicted the club won’t win the league this season. As we speak, Liverpool are the odds-on favourites to win the league again at 6/5, with Arsenal just behind at 15/8.

In the bookies’ eyes, it’s a two-way title race and City, at most, can push to finish inside the top 4 and potentially win a domestic trophy, but even that looks a stretch at the moment. Last season was the first trophyless campaign for Pep in almost 10 years and it could potentially happen again.

To make matters worse, new Liverpool manager Arne Slot, who’s hit the ground running since taking over from club legend Jürgen Klopp, has just been named ‘Manager of the
Month’ for August following Liverpool’s storming start to the season. It’s 3 wins in 3 for the Reds, and Liverpool look inspired following their surprise title win last season and some big summer spending. Even though record £100m signing Florian Wirtz has yet to find his feet, this season has yet another comfortable Liverpool title win written all over it.

Of course, there’s nothing to say that Pep won’t suddenly find his groove again and shock everyone by leading City back to Premier League glory. In football, though, once a side has started to decline and even expensive January and summer transfer windows, which looked like much-needed shots in the arm, can’t turn things around, the writing is on the wall.

Let’s not forget that the old guard at City is also mostly out the door. Kevin De Bruyne, Kyle Walker, Ederson, and, just this past week, İlkay Gündoğan, are all gone. Rodri, Bernardo Silva, and Rúben Dias remain, but even they’ve declined over recent seasons and Rodri hasn’t looked the same ever since his injury setback.

Lack of Recruitment Behind City Collapse, Says Club Owner
When trying to identify what’s caused Man City’s recent downfall, fingers are being pointed in different directions. Some believe that City got too comfortable after winning 6 Premier League titles in 8 seasons, while others have, bizarrely, speculated that Pep’s recent divorce from his wife caused him to lose frame.

The truth, though, is that City’s collapse ever since the 2024/25 season comes down to something simple: lack of recruitment. This is something that even City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak conceded in an interview a few months ago:
“This year is another year where I think when I look back, last summer (2024), we probably should have been more aggressive in some of the changes we needed to do. We didn’t do that and that ended up costing us this year.”

After once again comfortably dismissing Arsenal, City won the 2023/24 Premier League title in convincing fashion and went into the summer thinking they didn’t need to strengthen. This, ultimately, was a huge mistake, as City’s underwhelming start the following season forced them into a rushed January transfer market, where they quickly brought in the likes of Omar Marmoush and Abdukodir Khusanov, only to still finish 3rd in the league.

Unfortunately for Pep, despite spending big this summer, the club’s lack of decisiveness the previous summer window is still biting them. City have, in effect, gone off the rails, and the fact the club’s old guard have all suddenly aged so quickly means it couldn’t have happened at a worse time.

Is There Any Way Back for Pep Guardiola?

City are stuck. Their opening run of just 1 win in 3 games this season tells us that the Pep era of dominance is not coming back any time soon. The club has lost its fear factor, Pep is short on ideas for the first time in his career, and two back-to-back transfer windows haven’t stopped the ship from sinking.

It’s impossible to say for sure, but this will almost certainly be Pep’s final year down in Manchester. He’ll struggle to catch an extremely dominant Liverpool side, who look all but certain to
win yet another title. Arsenal could, perhaps, cause problems, but even Mikel Arteta’s side look light years behind the Reds.

They say all good things come to an end in football, and Pep’s time could be up. That’s not to say the new season will be a complete disaster for him, as City could still potentially win a domestic trophy and finish inside the top 4, but the odds of the Sky Blues getting their hands on a 7th Premier League title are extremely low.

During the summer, Pep did jokingly claim he’d “take a 15 year break” when he finally does leave City. And even though he was being ironic, don’t be surprised if Pep does walk out the exit door come next summer before taking an extended break away from football.

That’s still a while off, though, and Pep will no doubt look to get City back on track in the build up to Christmas. City fans shouldn’t get their hopes up for a turnaround, however, as the Pep Guardiola of old is no longer here.