Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola made a downbeat assessment of his side's recent form after their winless streak stretched to four games.
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Guardiola opens up on winless streakSays they needed a reality checkClaims they are "not the best in the world"GettyWHAT HAPPENED?
For the first time since Guardiola's first season at the Etihad, City has gone four Premier League games without a win. As they were outplayed against Aston Villa, which prompted the manager to acknowledge that his team was "struggling". Guardiola also responded to Luton Town boss Rob Edwards calling Guardiola's side "the best team in the world". The Spaniard believed that his side do not in fact deserve this acclaim due to their winless run, although did thank Edwards for his words.
AdvertisementWHAT GUARDIOLA SAID
"I think for everyone in the club, it's good what we are living. I think it's necessary to live that. For a long time, it was about how good we are," Guardiola told reporters on Friday. "Maybe we need it. It's terrible, we're unbeatable and we are now not able to win one game. In the big moments, I was realising that. Maybe for myself first, I need that challenge to prove I'm a good manager. For the players it's a good challenge, that Aston Villa were miles away from all of us… And now we may not qualify for the Champions League next season."
"They're [Luton Town] doing really, really well for the way they played. Top clubs and teams like Arsenal and Liverpool have struggled to win, it will be the same for us," he added. "Hopefully it doesn't make us weaker, thank you for the words [from Luton boss Rob Edwards]. It's a football game and in that moment, we are not the best team in the world as we are not getting results. When you are winning games, you are the best team in the world. When you are not, it's a crisis. It can be exaggerated on one side but that's the reality."
GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
The run of poor form has seen the City side drop from within reach of the top of the table to fighting for the Champions League spots. Guardiola continued by cautioning that fourth-place City may have difficulty earning a spot in the Champions League the following year, but he also gave his team the confidence to bounce back if they encountered more severe long-term difficulties.
WHAT NEXT FOR MAN CITY?
Manchester City will hope to have a slightly easier time against Luton Town when they take them on on Sunday, as they look to restart their campaign and go onto one of their famed runs in the second half of the season. Given the strength of Arsenal and Liverpool this term, it looks like they might need to.