Manchester City defender Rúben Dias sounded off over Southampton’s style of play after the two sides drew 0-0 in the Premier League on Saturday, accusing them of “not even trying to play.”
Rock-bottom and relegated Southampton had looked poised to equal Derby County’s season-low tally of 11 points in 2007-08, but the draw moved them to 12, which had their fans at a sun-drenched St Mary’s Stadium singing in celebration.
City dominated with 26 shots compared to Southampton’s two, but the visitors defended in numbers, particularly in the dying minutes, to deny them.
“It’s frustrating. Every point matters right now until the end, and it’s frustrating to play a team like them. They don’t even try to play. They just wasted time the whole game,” Dias told Sky Sports.
“I don’t even feel like they want to play the game or win the game. They’re just sitting around. But it is what it is. We tried every way. We had chances, but we didn’t score. It is what it is. We didn’t score, so we take the draw and we move forward.”
Man City manager Pep Guardiola, however, said it was up to his team to deal with the opposition’s approach.
“No, no, no, absolutely not,” he said, when asked in his news conference if he agreed with Dias’ criticism of Southampton. “They can do whatever they want.
“For many years here we faced teams with different approaches and a team that’s been relegated to play in that way. It’s our duty to break them, that’s what we have to do.
“We had chances to break them but unfortunately we could not score. We didn’t concede one shot on target, they didn’t do much [in the final third]. OK, the way they play, we have to accept it.
“There’s nothing [else] to say. I don’t agree with Ruben. We have to accept it.”
Information from Reuters contributed to this report.
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