The trip to Swansea in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup is a test for Manchester City: reduce dependence on Erling Haaland, regain winning identity and relieve pressure.
Manchester City head into their Carabao Cup fourth round clash with Swansea City under pressure: an inconsistent Premier League run, an under-readable attacking model and a heavy reliance on Erling Haaland. This is an early opportunity for them to lighten the load on their main striker, rekindle their winning streak and ignite positive momentum for the rest of the season.
Man City are living off Haaland’s goals.
Pressure before the away trip to Swansea
The Carabao Cup isn’t the ultimate tournament, but for City right now it’s bringing them exactly what they need: a winning streak. In the Premier League, opponents have exploited City’s predictable weakness, with Haaland being the default choice. When that channel is blocked, the team’s attacking power is significantly reduced.
The defeat to Aston Villa was illustrative: Haaland was nullified and both City’s attacking structure and composure were tested. It was not just a defeat in terms of score, but also a reminder of dependency – something Pep Guardiola knows well and does not want to repeat.
Lessons from defeat against Aston Villa
With the opposition locking down the Norwegian striker, City lacked the ability to rotate and create goals from multiple sources. Foden, Doku and Bernardo Silva have the potential to explode, but the consistency hasn’t been sustained long enough. That’s why the Swansea game needs to be a place to restart the diversity in the firepower.
The problem of Haaland dependence and the need for goal distribution
Since the start of the season, Haaland has been scoring regularly – an advantage that is also paradoxical. His rain of goals has made City stronger, but at the same time made them vulnerable to being defined by a single striker. As a result, when the “detonator” is disabled, everything stops.
Guardiola admits that Man City cannot rely on just one individual. The problem here is not replacing Haaland, but distributing goals: allowing Foden, Doku, Bernardo Silva – and the back line more broadly – to appear in good finishing positions, with more flexible attacking rhythms. Diversifying the scoring output is also a way for City to regain the unpredictability that defined Pep’s era at the Etihad.
Rotation of the squad: collective testing
Facing a Championship opponent like Swansea is a good time for Pep to rotate, giving opportunities to the young players or reserves. Not only to preserve physical strength, it is also a test of adaptability: Can Man City operate coherently even when Haaland is not present or not at the center of the ball?
The Carabao Cup allows for experimentation with structures and roles: who will attack the open spaces, who will link up the lines, who will create the pressing rhythm after losing possession – questions that will need to be answered on the pitch. For a team accustomed to winning, the feeling of controlling the game early on will be as important as a big win.
The significance of the Carabao Cup to the season’s journey
Man City have had eight consecutive seasons ending with at least one trophy. Last season, they came away empty-handed – a strong enough wake-up call for the coaching staff and players to review their own standards. In that context, the Carabao Cup becomes a true psychological launchpad: a convincing performance not only takes City further but also creates momentum for the remaining arenas.
Guardiola once stressed: “We have to find our identity again – not just winning, but winning in different ways.” Against Swansea, that message needs to be concretized by proactive deployment, shared scoring responsibilities and flexibility in the attacking layers. From small victories, City can restart the big trajectory.
The result at Swansea therefore carries value beyond a ticket to the next round. It is a measure of the level of risk control when Haaland is being carefully looked after, a springboard for the attacking faces to find their rhythm, and an answer to the most important question for Man City at the moment: can they win in different ways?
