2 days ago
36
Manchester City were feeling positive after winning at Nottingham Forest after Christmas, but the mood has quickly shifted
Up in Sunderland, Pep Guardiola was bemused at being asked about his future for the second time in a fortnight and amused at how Manchester City's draw would be perceived. Told that his team had dropped two points at the Stadium of Light, he countered that they had gained one as he defended the performance on one of those nights when the ball would simply not drop in the goal for them.
Not far away from the press conference room, Bernardo Silva was being punchier. "We are not happy because we wanted better than this," the City captain said as he lamented that they hadn't come out for the first half with the same level that they subsequently enjoyed in the second.
It is not uncommon for Guardiola to praise the performance of his players after they drop points - he tends to be more critical of them when they win - just as it is rare that Silva minces his words after a draw or defeat. In that sense, they can complement each other well to give a full picture of how the squad is feeling.
More than anything, Silva's words on New Year's Day spoke to a side that is not happy with dropping points because they want to go all the way in the Premier League title race, while Guardiola had the relaxed confidence of a man who still believed they could do it.
Three days later, and after another damaging draw and injuries to their first-choice centre-backs, Guardiola was more anxious when he spoke to reporters after the game. The full extent of the issues for Josko Gvardiol and Ruben Dias had not been diagnosed, but it was enough to bring the mood down.
There was less punch from Silva as well as he reflected on another missed opportunity. "I think we deserved a bit better today but it is what it is," he said. “We’re now in a more difficult position but, I’ve said it a few weeks ago when we were two points behind – we have to focus on ourselves.
“After two draws, we definitely need to start winning games and it’s a game at home to try to do that. We’ll rest, try to prepare for that game and try to go back to winning ways – we definitely need that.”
Guardiola has spoken a lot this season about the improvement in vibes in the squad, producing a better environment for the team to grow and thrive than what they went through the year before. Silva has been at the heart of that, restoring standards to the group as captain.
It has been a damaging week though, with four dropped points in four days and - more worryingly - four injuries in the same timeframe to land City back into a world where all they can try and do with so many games coming up is survive.
A cup semi-final, a Manchester derby and the end of the first phase of the Champions League campaign gives plenty of opportunity for City to quickly improve the mood at the Etihad again. The worry is that if they cannot take those chances it will only bring more pain to a group that is hurting.
English (US) ·