Guardiola: City Doesn’t Run or Fight.. Haaland Is Not to Blame

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola emphasized on Tuesday that striker Erling Haaland is not solely responsible for the defending champions’ dramatic struggles this season.

City, winners of the Premier League in four of the past five seasons, are experiencing their worst spell in recent history. Their 2-1 loss to Aston Villa on Saturday marked their ninth defeat in 12 matches across all competitions.

Haaland, last season’s top scorer with 27 league goals, has failed to find the net in five of his last six matches.

The Norwegian striker admitted to “TNT Sports” after the Villa defeat: “I look at myself first. I haven’t scored the chances I’ve had. I need to do better; I haven’t been good enough.”

However, Guardiola defended Haaland, who has scored 108 goals since joining the club in 2022: “We’d be worse without him. He needs better service in the right areas.”

He continued: “It’s about us, not one player. When we used to score goals, and Erling was at his best, it was because of the team.”

Guardiola stressed the importance of collective responsibility: “When you have issues in defense and midfield, the blame is on everyone. It’s a team. It’s not about one player.”

The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager reiterated that Haaland is crucial for City’s success: “He’s very important to us and will continue to be. We need to improve in utilizing him better.”

Guardiola explained that City’s recent results aren’t due to a lack of effort: “It’s not that the team doesn’t run or fight, nor is it about a specific player or coach. It’s the small details—sometimes big ones—that mean we’re not as good as we were. But we have another chance on Boxing Day.”

City is seventh in the league with 27 points, 12 behind leaders Liverpool, who also have a game in hand.