Pep Guardiola has issued an update on the injury that led to Jeremy Doku’s absence during the 2-1 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday evening.
The Premier League champions fell to a fourth successive defeat across competitions for the first time since 2006, and Pep Guardiola lost four matches in a row for the first time in his managerial career.
Erling Haaland had initially put Manchester City ahead in the first-half in what was largely a strong showing from the squad after another difficult week, and whilst they entered into the half-time interval ahead, things would change in the space of a few minutes later in the game.
In the space of just five minutes, Fabian Hurzeler’s two substitutes would turn the game on its head, with Joao Pedro equalising before Matt O’Riley put the hosts ahead to once again stun Guardiola’s side.
Speaking after the contest in the second-half of his post-match debrief, Pep Guardiola looked ahead towards the international break and issued insight as to how he is personally coping with the losing streak at the club.
Here is every word from the embargoed section of Pep Guardiola’s post-match press conference from the Amex Stadium on Saturday night!
On Fabian Hurzeler’s Brighton
“Really, really good. How he can link inside. I think Roberto De Zerbi helped a lot these players to step up in the short passes and all the processes they can do. There is many, many things that I see that Roberto installed in this club that of course Fabian (Hurzeler) added his own things like everything that has happened, but how he links inside is aggressive, really, really good play. (Too aggressive?) No, no.
On Jeremy Doku
“He has some muscular problems in his quadriceps. He doesn’t feel good, he cannot run at full speed. (After the international break?) When we arrive, we will make a test and we’ll make a selection and we’ll see how they feel.”
On whether he is looking forward to the international break
“I think everybody needs it, yeah. I think in our heads, it will be good for all of us; for the players, for ourselves, but especially for Ruben (Dias) to come back, hopefully John Stones comes back, and hopefully the other players.”
On how he is coping with the losing run
“I was a football player, and many times I lost a lot of games; four in a row, five in a row, six in a row. I never expect different for the fact we won in the past that we are special. People can believe that but it’s not true!
“You can lose four games in different competitions, but again, if you ask me every single game that we lost, I would give you my opinion how was the game. I know when after you win everything is perfect, for example Fulham we won, and we played MILES AWAY worse than today and against Sporting Lisboa and Spurs. MILES AWAY!
“But after that, ‘Ah great mentality’, ‘Great mentality from the Manchester City players!’ It’s not about that. It’s about how you perform, and we performed really well but we were not consistent enough to maintain this level that helped us to win what we won for many years.
“Hopefully in the future we can come back, and if don’t come back we will learn from that and if we are not able to win, we will work to come back. That is what it’s about. To not have a lot of complacency when you won a lot and knowing how difficult it is, that makes us believe how difficult it was and how nice it will be when we win again. Always it is like that.
“This period we will reflect, ‘Oh my god what have we done my friends?!’ Four in a row, six in seven years, against these Brightons, these Bournemouths, against all these teams that are important, that puts into perspective. I don’t take it for granted, you know?
“Before the season, ‘Ah City are going to win again, easy, right?’ And if we don’t win the treble it’s a failure, you know? After we won three or four Premier Leagues, I was a failure because I didn’t win the Champions League, now no. With the Champions League, now he is not a failure.
“So we have been top, and right now we are not at our best, it’s obvious, but still it’s November so hopefully we come back and step by step we do it, because the league, I have the feeling that every game will be tough for all the teams. We have to recover our best and we will see!”
