In deep conversation with Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Pep Guardiola left Estadio de la Ceramica down a narrow corridor which spilled out onto the street.
Carrer Blasco Ibanez was lined with Villarreal fans hollering at the City team bus, which drove past a bar named Tiki Taka as it ferried Guardiola’s team back to their hotel after another job well done.
Tiki taka is a term City’s manager abhors, insistent that it describes keeping the ball for keeping the ball’s sake, rightly arguing that none of his sides have ever done that.
But while the bright neon sign that Guardiola’s players glanced at through the windows of their bus does not entirely encapsulate the new City, there are certainly signs they are returning to some fundamentals of their play. More incision in possession and a stronger spine – aided greatly by the form of Gianluigi Donnarumma and Erling Haaland at both ends of the pitch.
It would be wrong to say that City are properly back – and there doesn’t appear to be anybody around the team who believes that, either. Even after a nine-game unbeaten run in all competitions, including six clean sheets.
What has happened is incremental improvement since losing at Brighton at the end of August, when the blowing of a lead felt inevitable and the coaching staff seemed powerless to stop it. To jump from that to steadier displays, a more controlled feel, is a decent first step in challenging Arsenal. If it does click properly, then they will pose a real problem to Mikel Arteta.
Erling Haaland opened the scoring against Villarreal – it was the striker’s 24th goal in 14 games for club and country this season
Bernardo Silva (right) added Manchester City’s second goal in their 2-0 win in Spain, with Pep Guardiola’s side extending their unbeaten run to nine games
Guardiola always stresses the importance of staying in touch come spring and will hope they are capable of that. Quietly, City are racking up victories and regaining the sort of confidence that had completely evaporated this time last year.
They have not found the exact formula just yet – but they are getting there. Slowly, slowly. They are still to put together a truly great 90-minute team performance.
It is difficult to sum up City’s campaign and their prospects at the moment. The past month or so has given off the feeling that they are flying under the radar – eyes diverted towards Liverpool’s patchy form and Arsenal – yet that seems incongruous. Guardiola teams never normally fly under radars.
No Premier League team has won more games than City’s 17 across this calendar year. Arsenal have accumulated 57 points to City’s 56 having featured in 28 games rather than 27. Liverpool are on 54 from 28, owing to their three consecutive defeats.
At +33, City’s goal difference is superior and they have scored 57 goals, with Haaland accounting for 19. It’s not bad at all but the idea that there is plenty of room for improvement lingers.
The next month will offer a stronger test of how much they are improving. First up on Sunday they visit a fellow in-form side in Aston Villa, who have won five in a row in all competitions.
Then, after a trip to Swansea in the League Cup, it’s three tough home games against Bournemouth – a point behind City in third – Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool, followed by Newcastle away.
In Villarreal, they dominated the ball and there is some surprise among the squad at an outside fixation on them becoming happier to go long following the appointment of Pep Lijnders as assistant.
‘I don’t think you can really label us as going more direct,’ said Rico Lewis after the match. ‘You play what is in front of you in the moment.
‘Against Villarreal we felt confident playing that kind of (fluid) football and we had the players out there to do that.
‘Most of the season it’s been like that, in my opinion. Maybe some games we’ve struggled with it but I feel like Wolves (on the opening weekend of the season) was the same… it’s always there but it’s having the confidence to do it from minute one.
‘The manager says everyone can play amazing football when you’re three or four nil up but it’s about doing it from minute zero and that’s what we did at Villarreal.’
Lewis, who played 73 minutes in Spain, had only made two brief substitute appearances in the last month – he hadn’t started a game of significance since the Tottenham defeat in August – and joked that he feared not making half-time due to tiredness.
He admitted that going away with England’s Under 21s, scoring a stunning goal, helped him reset after a spell of frustration.
His energy and inventive running from central midfield offered City a different dimension against Villarreal and it will be interesting to see how Guardiola utilises the 20-year-old moving forward.
Rico Lewis was pleased with the way he played in midfield – his favoured position
Guardiola congratulates John Stones on City’s latest victory and another clean sheet
‘I knew I needed to go and prove a point,’ Lewis added forcefully. ‘I needed to prove myself because I’ve always wanted to play in midfield and talk about it all the time. When I get the opportunity, I want to take it.
‘The performance, coming with a result like that, helps more than you think. You can win 1-0 and it be a bit scrappy and you can be happy while knowing that the performance wasn’t good.’
City weren’t perfect in Spain, giving up some decent chances later in the game, and Villarreal struck the post in a moment that might otherwise have set up a tense finish. Lewis has a point about the display, though. It was better than against Everton at the weekend, which in turn was better than when squeaking past Brentford before the international break.
Guardiola’s mantra at the moment is to make the next outing better than the last as they rediscover their groove with a new set of younger players supplementing the long-established ones. For now, City are living up to that.