Much has been debated in recent times about the fact that the new Champions League format favored the most powerful teams even more. But the defeat in Turin against Juventus (2-0) has put Guardiola and his Manchester City on the ropes, who will arrive at the next match against PSG playing everything for everything against his friend Luis Enrique in a duel that, priori, it could practically leave one of the great ‘transatlantic’ of European football out of the next round.
Juventus 2-0 Manchester City: summary and goals | Champions League (J6)
“We have two games left. We need a point or, perhaps, a victory,” said Pep Guardiola who never imagined finding himself so far down in the standings. Right now, Manchester City is in 22nd place with eight points. The same as PSV and Dinamo Zagreb, which marks the limit of the teams that will have to compete in the playoff round if they want to be in the round of 16.
We have two games left. We need a point or maybe a win
Pep Guardiola
Guardiola, however, is clear about where the classification has been complicated: “The situation is due to the match against Feyenoord. We were 3-0 with 15 minutes left and we ended up tying. That’s where the problems started,” admitted Guardiola who, Of course, last night he came out convinced of the performance his team showed. “We played well. Very, very well.”
The situation is due to the match against Feyenoord
Pep Guardiola
The victory against Nottingham Forest just a week ago seemed like it could mark a turning point in Manchester City’s season, which had gone seven consecutive games without winning. But, seeing what came next, it seemed like a mirage. At the weekend they were not able to beat Crystal Palace… and yesterday they were left ‘dry’ again in Turin.
Erling Haaland regrets the draw against Feyenoord.EFE.
It is evident that Manchester City has a serious problem in front of goal. The dependence on Haaland is more than palpable and, the moment the Norwegian takes his foot off the accelerator, the team suffers. His have been 18 of City’s 44 goals this season. The problem is that there is no second line to accompany it. In fact, players like Stones or Gvardiol score the same goals (three) as Foden or Doku. “Tell me a team with Erling that doesn’t depend on him scoring,” Pep said on November 25.
Tell me a team with Erling that doesn’t depend on him scoring
Pep Guardiola
However, it is at the back where the team is completely unraveling and, as it could not be otherwise, the conclusion always ends up being the same: Rodrigo Hernández. They run much more easily for the team, they concede more shots (7.62 – 8.36) and, above all, they are generating much clearer chances. Proof of this is how the xG against has increased since the Spaniard’s injury: from 0.88 to 1.03.
Manchester City
If we add to this the doubts between the sticks, where Guardiola has been alternating between Ederson and Ortega in recent games, it is not surprising the bleeding that City is suffering in defense… as surprising as it may seem. And, in the last nine games, there has been no team in Europe that has conceded more goals with a total of 21!
The figures, of course, are completely anti-competitive and Guardiola will have to try to find a solution before visiting a PSG team that, after beating Salzburg, seems to have regained its edge. With no time to recover… it’s time to return to the Premier League to receive United in the ‘Manchester Derby’. This doesn’t stop and the feeling is that City needs a time out to overcome this ordeal.
