Man City have chance to test out Pep Guardiola theory this week

Manchester City suffered a Premier League setback against Newcastle but they can show how quickly they can bounce back this week.

Manchester City don't have much time to lick their wounds from a controversial and tetchy night on Tyneside, with Pep Guardiola's side thrust straight back into action at the start of this week.

Guardiola and his players were arguing with the officials and their Newcastle counterparts on the pitch just 72 hours before Tuesday's Champions League clash with Bayer Leverkusen at the Etihad. They were left with a burning sense of injustice by the 2-1 defeat, but the feeling of frustration at a missed opportunity would have been just as strong.

Those players would have had a recovery day on Sunday and will train later this afternoon, ahead of the clash with the Bundesliga side, who are finding form with three straight wins under Kasper Hjulmand. Guardiola has no concerns about the tight turnaround and is instead relishing a schedule that reminds him of his greatest triumphs in Manchester.

"We are used to it, we won the quadruples and trebles playing in that way," he said. "We want it, right? The treble and quadruples, playing Saturday and Tuesday and Tuesday and Friday and Sunday. We are used to it, it’s not a problem."

The game also offers City the chance to bounce back immediately. That is a theme Guardiola touched on just before the international break when he highlighted how well his side had recovered from a tame defeat at Aston Villa.

That 1-0 defeat ended a nine-game unbeaten run, but the Blues responded with four straight wins, scoring three each time, and culminating in a comfortable win against Liverpool.

It was that 3-0 win that seemed to thrust them right back into the title conversation, but once again, a defeat has come out of nowhere. There is now a chance to put it right and recover momentum. After Leverkusen, City face Leeds, Fulham and Sunderland in their next three Premier League games, with the fixtures against the promoted sides at the Etihad.

The response to the Villa defeat particularly impressed Guardiola and he said earlier this month that it showed him his team were over last season's blip, when the losses quickly piled up. Now, his team have the chance to prove that is the case again.

"We have a setback. It doesn't matter, but we lose to Aston Villa, reaction to Swansea," Guardiola said. "The people forget Swansea, but Swansea is a start. You know, when you lose a game, you have to win again, quick, quick, quick, otherwise the mountain is more difficult to climb. And win Swansea helps us to win Bournemouth.

"And that game help us to compete well against Liverpool. That is what it's all about. And we know last season, you know, we started losing a game, ah, it's one game, two games, ah, two games, another three, and four, and five, and six."

If City are to stay in the hunt for trebles and quadruples again this season, they can't afford for one defeat to become two or three. Beating Leverkusen on Tuesday will consign the defeat to Newcastle to history, but first Guardiola and his players will need to recover, both physically and from the emotional energy they spent at St James' Park.