Pep Guardiola admitted to personal failure after Manchester City’s dramatic 2-1 defeat to rivals Manchester United on Sunday extended their alarming slump in form.
City, the reigning Premier League champions, have won just once in their last 11 matches across all competitions, including eight losses. This collapse leaves them fifth in the league, nine points behind leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand.
“I don’t have defence, I’m the boss, I’m the manager. I have to find a solution and I don’t find a solution,” said Guardiola. “When you lose eight out of 11, something wrong is happening… I’m not good enough. It’s as simple as that.”
Despite Josko Gvardiol’s first-half header giving City a crucial lead, their hopes unravelled in the dying minutes. A misplaced pass by Matheus Nunes set up Amad Diallo, who won and converted a penalty in the 88th minute through Bruno Fernandes. Diallo then exploited a defensive lapse to score the winner in stoppage time, completing a shocking comeback for United.
City midfielder Bernardo Silva was scathing in his assessment, likening the team’s decision-making to that of junior players. “If we make these stupid decisions with three or four minutes to go, you deserve to pay for that. Today in the last minute, we played like under-15s,” he said.
The result intensifies scrutiny on Guardiola, who acknowledged he anticipated a challenging season but conceded he never expected the struggles to reach this extent.
City’s bid to secure a fifth consecutive league title now looks unlikely, with the team needing a significant turnaround in form to re-enter the title race or even secure Champions League qualification.
