The English champions are in the unique situation of worrying about making it to the Champions League knockout rounds ahead of a difficult trip to Italian powerhouse Juventus because of Manchester City’s bad luck. City has only won once in their last nine games in all competitions, and Pep Guardiola’s managerial career has been at its worst due to an injury problem and a decline in form for some of their best players. They still have a chance to advance from the new league-phase format, even after losing 4-1 to Sporting Lisbon and embarrassingly losing 3-0 to draw 3-3 against Feyenoord.
However, with another challenging trip to Paris Saint-Germain in January before a home match against Club Brugge, their prospects of earning a spot in the round of 16 by finishing in the top eight are minimal.
Given that their Premier League championship defense appears to be in ruins, the Champions League is even more important for City this season.
The champions are now in fourth position, eight points behind Liverpool, and Arne Slot’s team still has a game in hand after winning a remarkable four straight English top-flight titles.
During Guardiola’s six title victories in the last seven seasons, City has frequently gone on a home run to win the league.
With injuries among an aging squad taking a significant toll, the atmosphere around the Etihad is different this time.
Guardiola remarked, “The season starts difficult, it will be difficult all season,” following his team’s most recent setback in Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace.
“We have to survive the season, every game, try to take points, to try to win games and go forward.”
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