Has Pep’s empire finally come to an end?
Manchester City look a shadow of their former selves, with their defence crumbling, mistakes costing them dearly and Guardiola desperately searching for solutions
Guardiola seems lost. On Tuesday night, after Manchester City were defeated by Real Madrid thanks to two monumental errors in the last five minutes, the Spanish coach remained stoic and resigned. He no longer scratches his head until it opens a wound, as he is unfortunately all too used to seeing similar scenarios. “This has happened to us many times, we didn’t find the solution. We fell when we were winning 2-1 and that hurt us a lot,” he said at the press conference at the Etihad, with a look of disappointment evident on his face.
The Catalan, who has never been known for criticising his players, once again faced the deluge of criticism alone and took full responsibility for the defeat: “I have nothing to reproach my team with”, he clarified. He could, logically, have pointed out or at least lamented Ederson ‘s childish attempt to come out of the woodwork, which allowed Brahim to equalise at ease in the 86th minute.
He could also do it with Rico Lewis , who, unhappy with his teammate’s mistake, wanted to make it even bigger with the defensive fragility evident in the duel with Vinícius . Lewis allowed the Brazilian to win the ball and serve, on a platter, his compatriot Bellingham , who was not even putting in a great performance.
Unexplained errors
On a day when Arsenal scored five goals against Manchester City , two of those goals were given away by Guardiola ‘s side . Akanji hesitated and gifted the goal to Odegaard, while Partey ‘s 2-1 came from a blunder by Foden , who passed the ball into… empty space.
Khusanov , who had a disastrous debut against Chelsea when he made a mistake in the 0–1 draw, escaped criticism thanks to his comeback. In the FA Cup against Leyton Orient, a 40-metre goal that ended up in the net due to an Ortega own goal (bad luck) almost cost them elimination against a third division team. In the 3–2 win over Paris Saint-Germain, Stones failed to clear a set piece correctly, while the fourth goal was the result of poor marking by Gvardiol .
The players’ performance decline is evident. Kyle Walker , who was unstoppable last year, is now at Milan due to inexplicable poor form. Phil Foden has lost his magic, Rúben Dias leads a defence that is leaking from all sides, Akanji can’t hold down the right flank, Rico Lewis doesn’t seem ready for high-level games, Kevin De Bruyne is far from his best physical condition, while Jack Grealish simply… doesn’t exist. Perhaps the only ones who can save the day are Savinho, Gvardiol and Haaland , who have kept the team alive at crucial moments.
Pep Guardiola has tried everything, investing heavily in transfers during the winter market, but he has not yet found the solution. Defensive instability has forced him to adopt a more passive style of play, sacrificing possession at crucial moments. However, in the last game, he once again opted for an uncoordinated attacking pressure, which did not produce any results. The players showed a lack of ability to create opportunities in attack, presenting a disappointing picture that is difficult to explain.
Statistics from a City in collapse
Against Real Madrid , Manchester City allowed 20 shots on target, the most they have conceded to a team at the Etihad since Guardiola took charge. According to Opta, Real Madrid had 3.42 xG (expected goals), while the Catalan coach’s team scored twice with just 1.6 xG. The game could have ended in a much heavier defeat for the English side, as Los Blancos wasted several clear chances.
Manchester City have conceded 17 goals in their nine Champions League games, averaging 1.89 goals per game – a disastrous figure by their standards. What’s more, they have already lost five games in which they have been in the lead this season, as many comeback defeats as in the previous three seasons combined (2020-21 to 2023-24). As if that weren’t enough, Guardiola could be without two key players for the second leg against Real Madrid . Grealish came off injured in the first half, while Akanji asked to be substituted due to discomfort after a clash with Vinicius .
Is the team playing tricks on Pep?
There is a sense that the players no longer support Guardiola, or at least that they do not have the mentality to reverse the team’s decline. The Catalan coach recently extended his contract until 2027 and has made it clear that he wants to stay in Manchester. However, before the defeat to Real Madrid, he had already spoken about his future: «With the relationship we have, I will be the one to decide when to leave. That is my opinion… but maybe tomorrow they will sack me. I don’t know.»
Guardiola undoubtedly deserves to leave whenever he wants. However, the recent image of Manchester City shows that things are not that simple…
