Sad evening for the Skyblues. Manchester City suffered new disappointment in the Premier League, conceding a heavy defeat against Tottenham (0-4) this Saturday. Closely followed by Chelsea and Arsenal, back within a small point of second place, the Mancunian club absolutely had to win against its opponent of the day to breathe a little. He will still have to wait. With Chelsea and Arsenal hot on their heels in the race for second place, this defeat could have major consequences for their ambitions for the end of the season. Especially since Liverpool, current leader with 28 points and a game in hand, is gradually starting to take off in the Championship.
A statistic underlines the extent of this fall for Manchester City: this home defeat is the first since November 2022 (undefeated in PL for 52 matches on home soil), marking an undeniable turning point in the team’s domination at the Etihad Stadium. Even more worrying, this is the fifth consecutive defeat for Pep Guardiola’s men this season, a catastrophic sequence which further weakens the team. Since its victory against Southampton (1-0) on October 26, the club has lost to Bournemouth, Brighton and Tottenham (x2), as well as to Sporting in the European Cup. In Lisbon, on November 5, Pep Guardiola’s men also suffered a heavy defeat with a score of 4-1. After this unfortunate meeting, Bernardo Silva expressed his incomprehension and his concern about the situation of his team: “ It’s difficult to find the reasons for what’s happening to us now, I don’t remember losing three times in a row in the seven and a half years I’ve been here. We’re in a dark place, everything seems to be going the wrong way “.
Guardiola extended but soon threatened?
For his part, his coach Pep Guardiola, extended by his management for two additional years, is still not ready to throw in the towel, despite an equally overwhelming overall observation. “ In eight years, we have never experienced this kind of situation. Now we have to live it and break it by winning the next matches, especially the next one. Today we see things a certain way, maybe in a few weeks we will see them differently » he said after the match against Spurs. The Spanish technician was also targeted by mocking chants from Tottenham supporters, who launched a “ Sacked in the morning » (dismissed tomorrow morning) during Pedro Porro’s third goal.
Behind the scenes of Pep Guardiola’s unexpected extension
This dark series thus highlights today the current difficulties of Manchester City, which seems incapable of regaining its usual level of play. Collective failure and the absence of offensive solutions are now recurring problems, which Pep Guardiola has failed to resolve. An element of response to this game, below that offered by the team in past years, could be the absence of Rodri, seriously injured at the start of the season, who cemented the midfield. The club will therefore probably rely on the next winter transfer window to strengthen.
