After having been one of the most successful managers in world football, Pep Guardiola could be expected to walk his way to a successful campaign with Manchester City.

However, the intense competition of the Premier League makes things much harder for the Spaniard. Apart from having to concentrate on the domestic commitments, City also have the small matter of doing well in Europe. The latter not only applies for City, but also to the manager. Here are some of the six games that could define City’s campaign in the 2016-17 season.

Manchester Derby

The first taste of Manchester derby for Guardiola will arrive in September. As both the teams arrive into the game with a 100% record, it will be extremely difficult to call. This will also see Guardiola being pitted against Jose Mourinho once again.
Liverpool on New Year’s Eve

Manchester City have been given one of the toughest ties on New Year’s Eve with the team facing Liverpool at Anfield. Going to Merseyside may not be as tough as before, but Liverpool are expected to provide a huge encounter. Even more interesting is that City have a game against Arsenal only a fortnight prior to this encounter.

Celtic and Tottenham in back-to-back Encounters

Visiting Celtic no longer seems to be easy after the arrival of Brendan Rodgers and City will have to be prepared for the worst. However, the also have to keep one eye on the game against Tottenham just a few days later. Both these games are made extremely difficult by the combination of the lengthy travel and potential lack of recuperation time.

Liverpool towards the end of March

The home game against Liverpool at the end of March is similar to a baseball game where City could hit a home run or get three strikes as they face Arsenal and Chelsea in subsequent games.