Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said teams have changed tactics because they are no longer intimidated by his side, which is making their Champions League campaign more difficult.
City are down in 25th place in the Champions League table, two points off the playoff spots, and Guardiola has noticed an increase in opposing teams adopting a man-marking approach, showing they don’t fear City as they used to.
“Everyone came to the Etihad and stayed back,” he told a news conference on Friday.
“The first team I saw man-marking was Neil Warnock at Cardiff. Now everybody does it. Everybody comes here, it doesn’t matter, man-to-man.
“They just jump on [City’s goalkeepers] Éderson or Stefan Ortega. You have to adapt, you have to be better with the ball, otherwise you will not qualify for the Champions League.”
Guardiola said while his side may have been outplayed by Paris Saint-Germain in a 4-2 defeat on Wednesday, their problems were more about effective use of the ball than physicality.
“Speed is important, but against PSG we ran more than they did,” he said. “Our problem is with the ball. That is what we have been lacking this season.
“When you have the ball and you don’t pass it properly to your partner, everything is so difficult.”
He stressed the importance of passing accuracy and said there was room for improvement despite the influx of new talent.
City signed Egypt forward Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday after bringing in 19-year-old Brazilian defender Vitor Reis and Uzbekistan defender Abdukodir Khusanov.
Guardiola believes Champions League qualification would be as significant an achievement as winning a trophy, especially with injuries to key players like Rodri and a depleted defence.
City are fifth in the Premier League, 12 points adrift of leaders Liverpool, as they prepare to host fourth-placed Chelsea on Saturday trailing the London club by two points.
Despite their struggles, Guardiola remains focused on making tactical adjustments to restore their competitive edge and a return to the Champions League via a place in the top four.
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