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Manchester City's four captains spent 10 days stewing over a second defeat of the campaign and a surrender of points at Brighton that had resembled plenty of miserable afternoons last season.
Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias went to Armenia on international duty. Erling Haaland took his frustration out on poor Moldova, plundering five goals over in Oslo. Rodri earned a couple of substitute appearances for Spain.
The four of them were all over Europe but the performance down at Brighton lingered in their minds. Giving up a lead, losing 2-1 in the final minutes, had an eerily familiar feel. A carbon copy of what unfolded down there last year and the quartet decided to gather together on arriving back as a matter of urgency.
Manchester United were on the horizon in what was termed a must-not-lose derby. Silva and his three lieutenants held a leadership meeting to discuss form and standards after losing against Tottenham and then on the south coast erased the opening-day positivity at Wolves.
It was a decisive call to come together so early on in a season but perhaps that is why Pep Guardiola overruled his own tradition by selecting the captains himself rather than the squad and staff voting as one.
The days after that, and before United's arrival, unfolded in an unusual manner: City trained on the Etihad Stadium pitch, a first under Guardiola. They tried different formations, including a diamond, in one session. And Guardiola's discussions with backroom staff ran over so long that he ended up exceptionally late for other commitments. It was not a normal week at City HQ.
Pep Guardiola's leadership team, including Erling Haaland and Rodri, held crisis talks earlier on in the season
It was held to discuss form and standards after losing against Tottenham and then on the south coast against Brighton prior to a game against Manchester United
There was a focus on correcting what had gone before the internationals and beating United 3-0 helped to reset somewhat. The presentation Guardiola received from his captains clearly played its part. The message was: 'Pep, we don't want to live this season like we lived last season.'
Guardiola spent Thursday afternoon watching a bit of last season in his office. Specifically the 2-1 reverse at Villa Park just before Christmas, in a scoreline that severely flattered his team, Phil Foden's last-minute consolation greeted by ironic chanting of 'we scored a goal' from the away end. Guardiola noted poor body language, not enough duels won, not enough movement in behind and too much complaining.
'We were empty,' he said before heading back there on Sunday. 'Drained. In that moment we were in a mess. We didn't have energy, we didn't deserve anything.
'The players had no energy. (Normally) we'll play three, four or five new players because they have energy and want to play, but last season that could not happen. Some of them who won four Premier Leagues in a row (thought), 'OK, what's next?' and didn't have it.
'How many games did we play really good in the beginning, get to 65 minutes and the players became tired and then sad and disappointed for the result again? And again and again.'
A first return to Aston Villa – a Villa who, before the shock Europa League defeat at Go Ahead Eagles had won their last five in all competitions – should represent a decent yardstick of how far City have actually progressed.
There is definitely caution around, Silva saying in the week that they have been 'quite good for a month' and Guardiola agreeing with the idea that a proper 90-minute display has yet to arrive. That the players, led by Silva but with able deputies – and Haaland's voice is becoming increasingly louder behind closed doors – are calling for more consistency should come as good news for the manager. It's nine unbeaten; 10 would match their longest run since last October, when their world fell in.
It is because of that spell of almost three months, nine defeats in 12, that many experts have City as outsiders for the title.
The message from the captains, including Bernardo Silva, was: 'Pep, we don't want to live this season like we lived last season.'
Ruben Dias was involved too, and City have enjoyed a welcomed upturn in form since
'It motivates you,' Josko Gvardiol said. 'When you see that no one talks about you and they're all talking about Arsenal and Liverpool, it is normal.
'They are good teams. We will see. I would say at the beginning of the season you could feel it, it was just about Liverpool and Arsenal. After the run we've had, everyone is getting aware again that we are still here.'
Guardiola is not committing either way on that at the moment and is probably right to keep his powder dry on the top. But he believes the way in which they battled back towards the end of last season served as a decent foundation for this, maybe offering a reason why they didn't spiral after those two defeats.
'The players came back,' he added. 'If we'd given up then we would have finished 10th. In this league? Finish 10th. We finished third and not much away from Arsenal, who were really good. Now we are a team that can win and can lose but we are a team who can do good things.'
