Man City's opening Premier League game of the 2019/20 season saw them stroll past West Ham 5-0 at the London Stadium, with Raheem Sterling netting an impressive hat-trick, Gabriel Jesus opening the scoring and Sergio Aguero dispatching a penalty.
There was a lot of talk around City's dominant performance, but there was also plenty of talk around the strength of Pep Guardiola's bench, with the likes of Aguero, Ilkay Gundogan, Phil Foden, Nicolas Otamendi, Claudio Bravo, Joao Cancelo and Bernardo Silva were all named as substitutes.
Jose Mourinho even went so far as to suggest that Man City's 'B team' could even challenge for a top four spot this season, such is the quality of City's squad.
So, has Mourinho got a point? Where would Man City's 'B team' finish in the Premier League?
We used Football Manager 2019 to try and find out.
Man City's 'B team' 2019/20 season predicted
To set up the simulation, we updated all the latest transfers, manager changes, promotions and relegations, to make it as realistic as possible. We also added in the injury to Leroy Sane, so that he couldn't play for the majority of the season.
We then deleted the following players from the Football Manager 2019 database, so that they couldn't be picked by City: Ederson, Kyle Walker, John Stones, Aymeric Laporte, Benjamin Mendy, David Silva, Rodri, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero.
So, without these key players, where would City finish?
We simulated the 2019/20 season with this squad to see what would happen.
Could City win the title?
Here's what happened...
Man City's 'B team' performance in 2019/20
Goals conceded
Without the likes of Laporte and Stones, City conceded 44 goals in 38 games, only the joint-sixth best record in the division, conceding the same as Burnley and more than Manchester United.
Goals scored
Without Aguero, both the Silva's, De Bruyne and Sterling, City could only manage 52 goals in 38 league games, five less than Manchester United and a whopping 25 less than Liverpool.
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Playing Style
Despite missing all of their best players, City still managed the third-best possession average in the Premier League, with 54 per cent.
Man City's 'B team' best XI in 2019/20
This is how Pep Guardila's best 'B team' XI looked in 2019/20.
Scott Carson was preferred to Claudio Bravo in goal, Cancelo, Otamendi, Garcia and Angelino completed the back four.
Gundogan and Fernandinho were played in deeper roles, with Zinchenko, Foden and Mahrez in attacking midfield, behind Gabriel Jesus.
Man City's 'B team' best individual performances in 2019/20
Gabriel Jesus stepped up in Aguero's absence, finishing as the club's top goal scorer, ahead of Mahrez, Zinchenko, Fernandinho and Gundogan.
Gundogan in particular had a great season, finishing with the fourth-most Premier League assists (11).
Man City's 'B team' best results in 2019/20
Despite City's much-weakened 'B team' lineup, they still beat United in the Carabao Cup!
City's 'B team' also beat Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League.
They also thrashed Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
City also beat Arsenal at the Ethad too.
Man City's 'B team' overall competition performance in 2019/20
This is how the Man City 'B team' season ended up.
Premier League: 6th place (59 points)
FA Cup: Fifth Round
Carabao Cup: Fourth Round
Champions League: Group Stage
Community Shield: Winners
Despite missing a number of key players and including a lot of young players throughout the season, City still managed a 6th place Premier League finish, as they secured a Europa League spot.
However, they failed badly in all the cup competitions, including the Champions League.
Football Manager 2019 suggests that although City's 'B team' will be competitive in the Premier League, they wouldn't challenge for the Premier League title, despite what Jose Mourinho might think.
Still, 6th place is not bad considering the squad at Guardiola's disposal!
