Manchester City’s infirmary is packed to capacity and despite the enormous breadth of the core, Pep Guardiola is forced to play his players in unfamiliar positions and call on many youth players from the academy. The Spanish coach is experiencing the worst series in his career.
Five consecutive defeats, in all competitions: Pep Guardiola had never experienced that in his entire career. Yet that is what the Spanish coach is currently going through at the helm of Manchester City.
A historic match, as Guardiola’s Citizens had not suffered a single defeat at home since November 2022, which amounts to 52 games. Manchester City had not suffered a defeat by three goals or more at the Etihad Stadium in official competitions since 2003.
Guardiola is missing all his stars. Kevin De Bruyne returned to the group at the start of the month, but he could only play five minutes against Sporting and 15 minutes in the last two Premier League games. The Spaniard is very careful with the Red Devil to get him fully fit before the end of the season. Jérémy Doku has also returned to group training, but does not seem ready to play against Feyenoord on Tuesday.
However, the Catalan coach will have to take risks, because there are still many absences. Rodri, the recent Ballon d’Or winner, is still absent, as is his almost sole replacement in that position, Mateo Kovacic. Ruben Dias is missing in the center of the defense, Stones has just returned from injury and is struggling, just like Aké, and Josko Gvardiol seems to be the only one lost amid the malaise. With the poor performances of Kyle Walker, Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan, who appear to be past their peak, things are not going well for Guardiola.
Give me back my players, and you’ll see!
During the press conference, prior to the important match against Feyenoord in the Champions League, in which the Cityzens must absolutely recover, the Spanish coach, who has just extended his contract for two additional seasons, tried to allay concerns. According to him, everything will go better when the injured return. But time is running out.
“Give me back my players, and you will see! It is difficult to play without four central defenders, two defensive midfielders, the best player in the world, Rodri, all season long and a winger. Give me back my players, and you will see.” Given his hunger for victories, Guardiola will be determined like never before when his strongmen are back to their best.
