Maybe it is time to rethink how squads are built. Can Manchester City and, to a lesser extent, Arsenal still afford to be so top heavy with mega-huge earners?
When the superstars are injured, or off form, or just plain knackered, or – whisper it – just getting a little older, it leaves a very unbalanced looking group.
Their replacements aren’t at nearly the same standard. More worryingly for the bean counters, they have lost the art of finding inexpensive rough diamonds and being able to polish them.
Other Premier League clubs have no sympathy for the stuttering giants. They understood they had to cut their cloth to suit their means.
So Brighton, Bournemouth, Brentford, Fulham and others might not have the superstars, but they have balance. They typically have at least two players of similar ability for most positions.
That means you can cope with the injuries without the standard dropping too far. There are few irreplaceable stars.
In contrast, City without Rodri and Kevin de Bruyne, and Arsenal without Martin Odegaard, suddenly look a lot less invincible.
‌Maybe this is the biggest point about both sides’ wobbles. They suddenly don’t look invincible.
It will only take another couple of questionable performances and the vultures will be circling.
It is vicious, but in football there is nothing sweeter than feasting on a once-great beast that suddenly appears vulnerable.
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