City's hopes to win a fifth consecutive title in the Premier League are destroyed, and the club is also eliminated from the Champions League after a season when it has not reached its usual level. The Citizens go to Vitality Stadium with the opportunity to reach a seventh consecutive semi-final of the FA Cup, but their coach considers that a victory would not be enough to remedy a bad season.
Guardiola has retained the team's hard core, Premier League champion each year between 2021 and 2024, for this season. However, Rodri's detrimental injury, golden ball, as well as the absence of several key players have struggled to maintain their previous level. Four players were recruited in January at a cost of more than 170 million pounds sterling, and Guardiola seems ready to further renew his workforce this summer.
No consolation batch for Guardiola
Guardiola said: ” Of course, it would be great to arrive in the FA Cup final, to win it and to qualify for the Champions League. I am almost certain that for the moment, it would be perceived as a great success, but the season has been bad and it will not change. Our level and many other things were not good, and that is reality. Of course, we want to achieve it to win one more title. But our behavior this season will not change, even if we qualify for the Champions League and win the FA Cup. »»
The trip from City to Vitality Stadium will be followed by a first league match at home against Leicester on Wednesday evening. The Citizens currently occupy fifth place in the ranking, which would likely allow them to qualify for the Champions League if they stay there.
