'Not correct' - Pep Guardiola mulls changes after Erling Haaland claim

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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was asked about the changes that he made during the 1-1 draw against West Ham

Pep Guardiola was left wondering if he should have made different substitutions at West Ham as Manchester City dropped more points at a critical time of the Premier League title race. Arsenal are now nine clear at the top of the table and while the Blues have a game in hand and host the Gunners next month, they have thrown away three leads in their last two league games.

Against West Ham and Forest, City have also been indecisive over substitutes. Guardiola was going to bring players on last week against Forest and then opted against it, while at the London Stadium it was Pep Lijnders in the dugout - Guardiola was serving the first of a two-match ban after his sixth yellow card of the season - when Phil Foden and Tijjani Reijnders were ready to come on before being delayed by 10 minutes.

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Broadcaster TNT Sports initially said that Foden was set to come on for Erling Haaland, but when his number did eventually flash up it was instead of Antoine Semenyo. Asked for his thinking on the changes, Guardiola said that it was 'not correct' that Haaland was going to come off and if anything he perhaps should have kept Semenyo on and taken Matheus Nunes off as City pushed for a winner that never came.

City's experienced players were disappointed by the latest setback for the team but Rodri does not want the younger players to lose heart from how far they have come this season after so much change over the last three transfer windows. The Blues will keep pushing in the four competitions they are in, and aim to be even stronger next year.

"No regrets. When you are here 10 years or seven like me and what we've done, you cannot ask more of the lads. We are able to do what we're able, we've been fighting," the midfielder said. "There are a lot of young lads in there that are a bit down right now. They don't have that experience in these moments, you need to support them. It is not time to criticise. You smile and go to the next one.

"Football is like this, you learn from these moments. Losing is part of the process but we're still alive in other competitions and we have things to fight for this year.

"I'm a player who has the experience to understand the circumstances and know that we are in a moment where we are building a team to win. It's not easy, it takes time and it is not the time to point the finger at anyone."