Frank Christian
As Manchester City struggles continue, Pep Guardiola is grappling with the reality of his team’s poor performance. The club recently endured its longest losing streak under his leadership, suffering a fourth consecutive defeat as they fell 2-1 to Brighton. The reigning Premier League champions conceded two late goals, allowing Brighton to secure the win in the last minutes of the match.
Now, five points adrift of leaders Liverpool, Manchester City’s chances of claiming a fifth consecutive Premier League title seem to be diminishing, despite there being plenty of matches left in the season.
Guardiola acknowledged that the current trend cannot last indefinitely, recognizing the challenges of maintaining dominance in the league. “Is the era going to come to an end? For sure, it’s not eternal,” he remarked after the match against Brighton. “For the next 56 years, City are not going to win every game in the Premier League, that’s for sure, but we can aim to be competitive,” he added.
While Guardiola maintained a calm and realistic outlook on the situation, experiencing four straight losses is likely unsettling for him, as it’s an unprecedented occurrence in his career.
“Normally people lose games,” Guardiola stated to the press. “There’s always a first time in your life. This is my challenge, our challenge. I want to embrace it. I won’t shy away, now more than ever, we will keep pushing forward,” he declared.
The absence of Ballon d’Or winner Rodri has posed significant challenges for the team. Against Brighton, City allowed only ten shots on goal, yet an alarming eight of those were categorized as “big chances” according to Opta statistics.
