"He said we don't need…sorry?" - Guardiola disagrees with Gundogan as Manchester City midfielder makes 'careless' claim after loss to Juventus
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola disagreed with midfielder Ilkay Gundogan's comments about his side 'overcomplicating' things after their 2-0 loss to Juventus in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, December 12. The Spanish tactician claimed that the Cityzens implemented his tactics 'really well' but the result didn't go their way.
Goals from Serbian marksman Dusan Vlahovic (53') and American midfielder Weston McKennie (75') condemned City to a seventh defeat in 10 games across competitions. Guardiola has come under fire for his stubborn tactics, with Gundogan the latest to speak out about the topic.
The German midfielder played the full 90 minutes and delivered a solid performance, completing 97/102 passes (95%) and winning 3/4 duels (75%). He came closest to opening the scoring for Manchester City, but his brilliant curled effort was matched by an equally spectacular save from Juve keeper Michele Di Gregorio.
The 34-year-old said after the game (via GOAL):
"It's very disappointing. We had chances to score a few goals but at the moment it feels like every attack we concede is just so dangerous. I have a feeling sometimes we are a bit careless with duels, instead of playing simple we overcomplicate things and we missed the right timing to release the ball."
"Just lose the ball and give them counter attacks. We are built for possession, keep the ball, be strong, if you can't do anything don't lose it. At the moment it's not working out for us," Gundogan added.
When asked about the German's comments on TNT Sports, Guardiola replied (via GOAL):
"He said we don't need...sorry? No, no, we have done it today, other days, no, but today we have done it, we have done it really well. We didn't lose many balls as happened in the past, we tried to arrive in the (best) positions. Italian teams defend so deep they are so compact, they are the master of these situations. Even with that we played like who we are. We missed the result but the performance is there."
With eight points after six rounds of fixtures (two wins, two draws, two losses), Manchester City currently sit 22nd in the Champions League standings.
"We will not forget this period" - Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola on rough patch
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has claimed that his side 'will not forget' their poor results after they regain their original form. After a 2-0 loss to Juventus in the Champions League, the 53-year-old also said that the Cityzens' revised 'target' is to just qualify for the playoff phase of the competition.
Guardiola said after the game (via Daily Mail):
"It's (playoff) the target. We need one point, three points. Go to Paris to try to do it and then the last game at home. This is the situation because of the game against Feyenoord. Feyenoord, when it was 3-0 with 15 minutes left (and ended in a 3-3 draw), created the problems. When we turn this around we will not forget this period. We will appreciate more what we have done and what we will do in the future."
Manchester City will next take on Manchester United in a mouth-watering Premier League derby on Sunday, December 15.