At the Cup Invitational Tournament in South Africa, Manchester City won one match and lost the other, failing to secure the championship, a result that disappointed many fans.
After completing the two warm-up matches, Gao Shen led the team out of Cape Town, heading north on a direct flight to Mallorca, Spain.
Mallorca's playing style had remained consistent from the Cooper era in the 1990s to Aragones' tenure. Their current head coach, Manzano, was also a well-respected figure in Spanish football.
Gao Shen deliberately chose this strong opponent to assess his own team.
However, in the warm-up match, he made large-scale rotations. Substitutions were nothing new, but this time, he completely reshuffled player positions. Gareth Bale was deployed at right-back, Sturridge played as a center forward, and Nigel de Jong was placed in central defense...
In the end, Gao Shen once again managed to defeat himself.
Manchester City suffered a 0-1 loss away to Mallorca.
Even Mallorca's head coach, Manzano, couldn't help but ask Gao Shen after the match why he had made such unorthodox tactical choices.
Gao Shen joked, "I was worried about spies in the stands gathering intelligence on us."
But he quickly clarified, "A warm-up match is the only opportunity I have to experiment and see what my players are capable of. Once the season starts, I won't get this chance, right?"
Manzano nodded in understanding and with a hint of envy.
Not every team had the resources or flexibility that Gao Shen enjoyed. For clubs like Mallorca, even assembling a complete starting lineup that fully embodied the coach's tactical vision was a challenge.
Having the freedom to experiment? That was a luxury!
…
After the Mallorca match, Manchester City flew west to Barcelona.
Their fourth warm-up fixture was against Espanyol, Barcelona's city rivals.
The decision to arrange this match was partly because Espanyol's tactical approach aligned well with Gao Shen's preferences, but also because of their head coach—Pochettino.
In fact, it was Pochettino who had reached out to Gao Shen for this friendly. Like Gao Shen, he had just taken over a new team.
More importantly, during his time in Italy, Pochettino had attended every single one of Gao Shen's coaching courses without fail. He was a textbook example of a diligent student. Now that he had stepped into management himself, it was only natural for Gao Shen to support him.
At Espanyol's El Prat Stadium, Gao Shen deployed a three-man defense.
He positioned Javi Martínez as the central defender, with David Luiz and Kompany flanking him on either side.
On the wings, Gareth Bale and Sturridge took up wide midfield roles.
The result? Manchester City played with bold aggression, their attacking play flowing smoothly—especially down the flanks.
Unfortunately, the man leading the line, Giroud, was wasteful in front of goal, squandering several chances. Still, thanks to a strike from Rakitic, City went into halftime with a 1-0 lead.
In the second half, Gao Shen switched to a 3-5-2 formation, pairing Giroud and Sturridge up front while moving Zabaleta into the right midfield role. This adjustment strengthened their offensive approach, but the finishing remained inefficient.
On the other hand, Espanyol, after making a series of tactical tweaks, found their rhythm. They launched a string of counterattacks and scored three goals in quick succession, turning the game on its head.
In the end, Espanyol came from behind to defeat Manchester City 3-1.
Despite the loss, Gao Shen was in high spirits.
Speaking to the media after the match, he described it as Manchester City's best performance since preseason began.
"Apart from the result, I'm very, very pleased with our overall play."
Gao Shen wasn't the only one who saw positives in the performance, Espanyol's head coach, Pochettino, also praised Manchester City.
"I could clearly see that he was experimenting with something new," Pochettino said. "And I'm really looking forward to seeing how it develops."
He dismissed the criticism surrounding Manchester City's warm-up results, insisting that reading too much into preseason games was pointless.
"If this had been a competitive fixture, I guarantee Manchester City would have played very differently."
Pochettino emphasized that friendlies should be judged on the process rather than the scoreline.
"Who says Manchester City has to play with three at the back?" he asked. "Just because they lined up that way in a warm-up match doesn't mean they'll do it in the actual season. Football has never been about rigid formations—player positioning is fluid."
Then, he took a jab at the media.
"This year's reporters? Absolute amateurs!"
…
Despite receiving backing from Pochettino, Manzano, and others, Manchester City still faced a media storm of criticism. After all, in four warm-up matches, they had recorded just one win and three defeats.
For a squad assembled at a cost of over €200 million, that was a dismal record.
The British press, always eager to stir controversy, treated Manchester City's preseason struggles like a festival. Doubts swirled about whether Gao Shen had any real tactical direction, and with the new Premier League season fast approaching in August, concern mounted over City's lack of a settled playing style.
A few rational voices attempted to counter the narrative. For instance, The Times pointed out that during Gao Shen's three years at Napoli, his preseason records had consistently featured more losses than wins.
But such perspectives were drowned out by the sheer volume of negative coverage. In the cutthroat world of British media, sensationalism sold far better than reasoned analysis.
As Gao Shen wryly remarked on Twitter, "The entire Premier League is waiting to laugh at us!"
Then, he added defiantly, "But I'm sorry, you're going to be disappointed!"
But that statement only brought him more doubt and ridicule.
The team had performed so poorly in the warm-up matches, how could he still have the nerve to say such things?
As for why preseason results supposedly mattered so much, the media had no real answer. They just criticized.
Because, after all, who told him to take charge of Manchester City?
…
From South Africa to Spain, Manchester City's next stop was Germany.
First, in Munich, they played to a 1-1 draw against 1860 Munich, then suffered a 1-2 away defeat to Mainz, coached by Thomas Tuchel.
Like Pochettino, Tuchel had also been one of Gao Shen's most dedicated students during his time teaching in Italy. He attended every session without fail.
Now that Tuchel had stepped into management, Gao Shen arranged this friendly to show his support from thousands of miles away.
After the match, Tuchel told the media that Manchester City had actually played better but were struggling with an intense schedule.
"From South Africa to Spain to Germany, they're playing a match almost every three days," he pointed out.
"And Gao Shen is really going all out. His lineup is completely different in every game, and he's even shifting players into unfamiliar positions."
Tuchel recalled discussing this approach with Gao Shen back when they were in Italy.
"He always felt that this kind of preseason was very effective, and he genuinely enjoys it. I think this method suits him, but it wouldn't work for everyone."
Tuchel also defended Gao Shen against the criticism he was receiving.
"He doesn't need to prove anything to anyone anymore. He is the best head coach in European football, maybe even the world. Yes, he's only 28, and some people refuse to accept it, but it's the truth."
He also noted that Manchester City showed clear tactical evolution during the match.
"There are a lot of professional details I can't go into, but I can say that he's attempting something very interesting. He's looking to further refine and improve upon his tactical ideas from Napoli."
"I'm really happy to see him doing this because it shows he's not a coach who just settles. He's still pushing boundaries, still innovating. That's something we can all learn from."
"For me, this wasn't about winning. The final score was irrelevant. What mattered was that it made me think—it inspired me. That's more valuable than any result."
While Tuchel, Pochettino, and Manzano had all praised Gao Shen's approach, the media and fans continued to mock Manchester City for their poor preseason results.
…
After finishing their matches in Germany, Manchester City took a brief pause before flying back to Manchester.
This was the first time the team had returned to Carrington since their summer training camp began.
According to the plan outlined by Gao Shen and his coaching staff, the preseason was divided into two phases. The first phase was now complete.
Upon returning, the team would review and analyze their performances before entering the second phase. This next stage would still feature warm-up matches, but now their preparations would start to revolve around the upcoming Premier League season.
Manchester City's league opener was scheduled for August 15.
Before that, Gao Shen arranged two final warm-up matches in the UK—one against Scottish giants Celtic and another against Southampton, a third-tier English side.
The Southampton match had been part of the agreement when City signed Adam Lallana.
Manchester City had acquired Lallana for €1 million, plus all the revenue from this friendly.
These two games would serve as the final sprint in their preseason preparations.
However, the British media remained unimpressed by Manchester City's summer training camp, especially by Gao Shen's work.
They argued that, after an entire month, he still hadn't settled on a mature and stable tactical system. That, in their eyes, was unacceptable.
Liverpool legend Alan Hansen also voiced concerns about Manchester City's fitness levels, form, and morale. Based on their preseason performances, he felt the team was not in good shape.
Gao Shen, however, dismissed such criticism outright.
Tagging Alan Hansen on Twitter, he sarcastically remarked that he didn't mind bringing some attention to Hansen's "pitifully low follower count." Then, he posed a direct question:
"The warm-up matches weren't even broadcast live—so tell me, where exactly did you watch them?"
Hansen replied that he had gathered his opinions from colleagues who attended the matches in person.
Gao Shen's response was short and cutting:
"I can only say—you really are an expert!"
Today, Alan Hansen was just another media pundit.
…
Despite the overwhelming criticism from outside, things remained calm within Manchester City.
That was largely because Gao Shen had shielded his team from the backlash, absorbing all the media fire and accusations himself.
(To be continued.)