Carragher on Pep.....

Suddenly it feels like it's open season. One quote in the heat of the moment, a desire to reinforce his principles and Pep Guardiola is seen as being arrogant and out of sync with English football.

'I'm not a coach for tackles,' is a phrase that has been used repeatedly since Manchester City fell apart at Leicester, a stick with which to beat Guardiola. It is impossible to miss the delight that critics — who have him down as a smart ass — have taken from seeing him endure these difficulties.

Guardiola was simply being truthful when he made that statement. Coaching for tackles? That's something you do with seven-year-olds, when you show them how to stand and when to make a block. It is one of the basics of the game. No Premier League manager needs to coach it.

It also seems to have been forgotten that the Barcelona team Guardiola managed was the best in the world at winning back the ball, swarming over opponents and closing down spaces. Sergio Busquets was central to it all, the best in the business at reading the game and nicking the ball away.

Why do we think he has got it wrong, then, because City's players aren't sliding into challenges? I'm someone who loved a tackle but, believe me, some of the criticism has been nonsense.

Rafa Benitez used to drum it into us at Liverpool: don't go to ground. Every player who steps on the field knows the importance of discipline — two mistimed tackles and you are sent off.

Two years ago, Xabi Alonso said something similar to me about England's fixation with tackling and everybody loved him for it.

When he was at Liverpool, he had read something in a programme from a 12-year-old at the Academy, who said his strengths were 'tackling and shooting'.

'I said to myself, "OK but I don't think the main quality of a player should be tackling",' Xabi explained. He had just been signed by Guardiola for Bayern Munich and everyone felt what he said was right. We needed to be more like Spain and had to move on.

So what's the difference? Xabi's comments carried authority as he had been part of Spain's three tournament wins and, earlier in 2014, he lifted the Champions League with Real Madrid.

People don't want to take it seriously when you say you don't coach tackles after losing 4-2 to Leicester.

If Guardiola does not win the Premier League this season, it won't have anything to do with the ability of City's players to tackle.

One of the reasons it might not happen is if they continue to be a shambles defensively, as they were against Chelsea and Leicester, when they conceded seven goals.

It is not right to say he is a coach whose teams can't defend as both Barcelona and Bayern had the best records in their leagues every season he was in charge, although they were teams who dominated possession in every game.

His issue, as things stand, is that this is the first time he has worked with a squad which is not good enough to do what he asks of them, but there is no way he will change his philosophy.

What would that say about him if he changed everything on the back of a few difficult results?

In many ways, the expectations many had for Guardiola were artificially raised by that dazzling 10-game winning start, but he has tried to keep perspective and was incredulous when it was put to him that City could complete a clean sweep of trophies. That was never going to be the case.

Before they played Tottenham in October, I said there was no way a squad with defenders such as Bacary Sagna and Pablo Zabaleta (age) and Aleksandar Kolarov and Nicolas Otamendi (not good enough) would become the new 'Invincibles' and that is how it has turned out.

The games causing most problems are those which you associate with being typically British, played at a high tempo. Think of the issues they had when drawing 3-3 with Celtic in the Champions League, that defeat at Tottenham and how Chelsea exposed them on the counter-attack.

Guardiola sides will always be susceptible to that tactic: it was the same at Bayern when they went out in the Champions League semi-finals to Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.

When a team play such a high defensive line, they will be vulnerable.

That was the case at Leicester. City didn't lose because they didn't tackle. They lost because they overplayed at the back against a team that like to press.

Another thing that has not helped is his constant tinkering. Since losing at Tottenham on October 2, Guardiola has played five different formations. He could adjust to educate himself in Munich because Bayern were so far ahead of everyone. You cannot get away with it in England.

So perhaps the injury to Ilkay Gundogan will make things more straightforward. I certainly don't mean that in a bad way, because Gundogan is someone I've always admired and, with his qualities, it is easy to understand why Guardiola wanted to sign him.

But the experimentation started when Gundogan returned to fitness. He has played 3-4-3, 4-1-4-1 and 3-4-2-1 to get Gundogan in the team.

The best results came when he had a back four, with the full backs pushing into midfield, Fernandinho holding and David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne joining the front three from central positions. They have won nine of 10 matches using that system.

The big debate about City is can they win the league playing the Guardiola way?

Arsene Wenger has been trying to go against the grain with Arsenal for 12 years but Guardiola has taken things a step further in his transfer business.

Wenger has never signed a keeper like Claudio Bravo just to play out from the back, nor has he ever signed a central defender such as John Stones to keep possession: neither of those signings have lived up to expectations yet.

If Liverpool do not win the league, I'd love to see City or Arsenal as champions. I love watching what Guardiola does. I don't care whether he fails or succeeds but I do know that the next three years are going to be entertaining.

It will be fascinating to see what answers Guardiola looks for to be successful in England. Who knows, we may even learn something!

When I think of City's title- winning sides, however, two players come to mind. For all the silk and skill of Sergio Aguero and David Silva, the dominant characters I see are Vincent Kompany and Yaya Toure: massive figures, full of power and pace.

Those are the traits required to conquer the Premier League. Leicester had it last season, don't forget. I would love to see Guardiola's methods pay off but, at this moment, I couldn't back City to do it. I don't doubt their skill. I just wonder if they have the power.