Pep Guardiola has declared himself “not good enough” after Manchester City’s season sunk to a new low after a 2-1 derby defeat to Manchester United.
The four-time defending Premier League champions have lost eight of their last 11 games in all competitions – winning just once in that run.
City are fifth in the standings and nine points behind leaders Liverpool, having played a game more.
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“I’m the boss, I’m the manager and I’m not good enough. It’s as simple as that,” Guardiola said after Sunday’s loss.
“I’m not doing well. That is the truth.
“This is a big club and when you lose eight of (11) something is wrong. You can say the schedule is tough or the injuries to players, but no.”
Guardiola has led City to unprecedented success, winning an unprecedented six Premier League titles 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 at Etihad Stadium.
“I knew that it would be a tough season from the beginning,” Guardiola added.
“I said (that) many times, even when we were winning, but I didn’t expect it was so hard like it was right now.”
It was a first derby victory for new United head coach Ruben Amorim, who led Sporting Lisbon to a 4-1 win against City in one of his last games in charge of the Portuguese club in November.
“I think we did a great job, we controlled it very well,” Amorim said.
“We didn’t allow much, of course we don’t create so much either but it was a divided game. But we believed a lot.
“I think for the fans it has a deep meaning … but we had a difficult moment one week ago against Nottingham (Forest) at home, in the storm.
“Today is a good day, let’s enjoy it for 10 minutes and then think about the next game.”
United are now 13th and five points behind fifth-placed City (27 points).
Chelsea won their fourth league game in a row, beating Brentford 2-1 at Stamford Bridge.
Goals by Marc Cucurella and Nicolas Jackson either side of halftime leaves the Blues two points behind leaders Liverpool (36), having played one more game.
Bryan Mbeumo pulled on back in the 90th minute for the Bees, who drop to 11th.
But manager Enzo Maresca continued to insist Chelsea could not win the Premier League title despite moving to within two points of top spot.
“No matter how many games we are going to win, I think we’re not ready to compete for the title,” said Maresca.
“One of the reasons is I think the team that knows how to compete to win titles will not concede a goal like we concede.
“On 90 minutes, a throw-in for us and we concede a goal. A team that knows how to win titles, that goal they’re not to going to concede. It’s why I continue to say that we are not ready for titles.”
In other games, Tottenham Hotspur eased pressure on manager Ange Postecoglou with a thumping 5-0 home win against bottom-of-the-table Southampton on the south coast.
The former Socceroos boss saw his side score all their goals in a scintillating first half, with Son Heung-Min, Dejan Kulusevski and Pape Matar Sarr on the scoresheet in between a James Maddison double to lift Spurs up to 10th.
The loss prompted Southamption to act swiftly to sack manager Russell Martin as the side remained anchored to the bottom of the league on five points after 16 matches.
“We can confirm that we have taken the difficult decision to part ways with our Men’s First Team Manager, Russell Martin,” the club said in a statement.
“Going into the start of the season, we all knew the challenges that we would face this year as we readjusted to life in the top flight, competing in the best and most competitive league in the world.
“However, the reality of our situation is clear. The board have supported Russell and his staff and been open and transparent regarding our expectations.”