Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola remained optimistic after his team suffered a 2-0 defeat against Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday, continuing their recent slump in form. City now sit 22nd in the Champions League standings, just three spots away from automatic elimination with two matches left to play. The Premier League champions have managed only one victory in their last 10 games across all competitions.
"We played well, really well," Guardiola told reporters. "We missed the final pass, the final action, and some transitions occurred, but I'm proud of these players. They gave everything and tried their best. Now we're in this period, and hopefully, we can turn things around and start getting results." He acknowledged the difficulty of competing in the Champions League in Europe but emphasized that City played well.
City's remaining group-stage matches are against Paris St Germain and Club Brugge. The new competition format allows the top eight teams after eight rounds to advance directly to the round of 16, bypassing the playoffs. For Guardiola's team, this now seems almost out of reach.
"We have two games left. We might need just one point or one victory. The last one is at home, and the situation is due to the game against Feyenoord (where City surrendered a 3-0 lead to draw 3-3) and especially the 0-0 draw against Inter Milan," Guardiola explained. "Our three away games were incredibly tough, and you have to accept that. When we look back, we'll appreciate more what we've done in the past and what we'll do in the future."
City will host local rivals Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday. Meanwhile, Guardiola's former club, Barcelona, secured a spot in the knockout stage by defeating Borussia Dortmund. Other winners included Arsenal, AC Milan, Atletico Madrid, Lille, Feyenoord, and Stuttgart.
Barcelona are second in the standings with 15 points, behind only Liverpool, after a thrilling 3-2 victory over Dortmund. Ferran Torres was the hero, scoring twice, including the decisive goal with five minutes remaining. Arsenal are third with 13 points after a comfortable 3-0 win over Monaco, with Bukayo Saka scoring twice.
Lille also have 13 points, securing a narrow 3-2 victory over Sturm Graz thanks to a late winner from Hakon Haraldsson. Atletico Madrid eased to a 3-1 win over Slovan Bratislava, while AC Milan defeated Red Star Belgrade 2-1, with Tammy Abraham scoring the winner. Feyenoord kept their hopes alive with a 4-2 win over Sparta Prague, and Stuttgart revived their chances with a 5-1 comeback victory against Young Boys.
The next round of Champions League matches is scheduled for January 21 and 22, with the league phase concluding the following week.
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