MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Pep Guardiola declared himself “not good enough” after Manchester City’s season sunk to a new low after a 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on Sunday.
The four-time defending Premier League champion has lost eight of its last 11 games in all competitions – winning just once in that run.
City is fifth in the standings and nine points behind leader Liverpool, having played a game more.
“I’m the boss, I’m the manager and I’m not good enough. It’s as simple as that,” Guardiola said after the latest loss. “I’m not doing well. That is the truth.”
Guardiola has led City to unprecedented success, winning an unprecedented four Premier League titles in a row and six in the last seven seasons. He has won 15 major trophies at the club, including the Champions League.
But he is experiencing the worst run of form in his coaching career, which has seen him win 33 major trophies at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City.
Guardiola signed a two-year contract extension last month, but that has not sparked an upturn in his team’s form.
City led 1-0 going into the 88th minute against United, but then conceded late goals to Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo — prompting boos from fans after the final whistle.
“I knew that it would be a tough season from the beginning. I said (that) many times, even when we were winning, but I didn’t expect it was so hard like it was right now,” Guardiola said.
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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
