The head coach of Manchester City, Josep Guardiola, commented to Sky Sports and BBC Match of the Day on the away defeat to Bournemouth (1:2) in the 10th round of the Premier League:
– It was an open match – we spoke with the players about how Bournemouth plays a physical and aggressive style of football, as the opponent has physical strength and speed, and they had six or seven days to prepare. We knew what they would do on the pitch, but in the first half, it was difficult to play against them – both teams had roughly equal possession in the center, and there were plenty of duels, but we knew we wouldn’t be able to match Bournemouth’s intensity. Congratulations to our opponents on their victory; it was well-deserved. In such situations, you have to win. Although we had our moments near the end of the match – after we scored, we had good momentum and chances for a second goal, but we couldn’t find the net again. There were also issues with the wingers. However, Bournemouth had plenty of scoring opportunities as well – Ederson made a great save. But we played well too, especially considering the situation we are in – we have few players in good form with a lot of game minutes, and quite a few players are lacking practice, which disrupts the balance. And although we played well against Tottenham this week, we couldn’t cope with Bournemouth’s intensity, and that’s why we lost. Of course, I would have liked to continue our unbeaten run in the Premier League, but the months and matches we’ve gone without a loss is remarkable. Now, in just two days, we have a match in Portugal, and we must move forward again. Although it’s not easy – Kyle Walker hasn’t trained with the team for sixteen days, only returned to group training yesterday, and Nathan Ake made incredible efforts to come back. But the boys are giving everything they have – and that’s natural; I’ve been in this club for nine years, many players have been here for a long time, and they will always have that attitude.
Senegal
