Manchester City are currently going through a phase of poor form, and crashed to a 1-2 defeat vs Aston Villa in their recent fixture. In their last 12 matches, City have lost nine, drawn and won one, which has increased the pressure on manager Pep Guardiola. Against Villa, City once against crumbled and seem to be running out of ideas without start midfielder Rodri. Jhon Duran gave the hosts the lead in the 16th-minute, followed by Morgan Rogers making it 2-0 in the 65th-minute. Meanwhile, Phil Foden scored a late consolation goal in injury time.

Other than Guardiola, the focus is also on star striker Erling Haaland. He started the season in good form, and scored 10 goals in City’s first five Premier League fixtures. But his scoring boots have gone missing lately, and he has only scored thrice since the start of August.

Speaking to TNT Sports after City’s 1-2 defeat, Haaland defended Guardiola with self-criticism. “First, I’m looking at myself. I haven’t been doing things good enough, I haven’t been scoring my chances. I have to do better, I haven’t been good enough,” he said.

“Of course, our confidence is not the best. We know how important confidence is and you can see that it affects every human being. That is how it is, we have to continue and stay positive even though it is difficult,” he added.

Also backing Guardiola, he said, “He won the Premier League six times in seven years, so we will never forget that. He will find the solutions. He has been doing that every single year. We still believe in him, we have to work harder than ever right now.”

City and Haaland will next be in action on Boxing Day (December 26), taking on Everton in the Premier League. A win will be crucial for Guardiola as it will give his side confidence ahead of a tricky fixture vs Leicester City on December 29.