Torrid run

The run of seven winless matches included six defeats, which was the worst stretch of Guardiola’s career.

Keith Curle who played over 200 games for City between 1991 and 1996, believes that the fact that the club have so many quality players is actually one of the reasons for their current poor run.

“Just about every single player in that squad also represents their country. I’m talking top footballing countries too, so given the way the calendar is organised now, this was always going to happen,” Curle told SportsBoom.com in an exclusive interview.

“Yes, I get that all the top clubs have players going away during international breaks. But there are usually a few who end up staying behind,” he said.

“If you look at City, I bet that the training ground is totally empty of senior pro’s whenever there’s an international break. Some of those lads, like Kyle Walker, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish, were playing all summer in the European Championships in massively competitive games.”

“That’s not only physically demanding, but it’s also mentally demanding too.”

It’s also well-documented that City are also dealing with a long injury list with seven players currently on the sidelines including Rodri, Phil Foden, Nathan Ake and Oscar Bobb. Star playmaker Kevin de Bruyne has also only just returned from an injury layoff.

While City have been the dominant force in English football for most of the last decade, their fall was inevitable argued Curle.

“So, no, I don’t think it’s any surprise we’ve seen a drop off from City. They won’t want to use that as an excuse and I know that’s not something Pep Guardiola will be doing — because as a manager or a coach, you never want excuses to become part of the conversation.

“But, if you look at not only the number of games but also the number of high-intensity games these boys have taken part in, it was always going to catch up with them at some stage.”

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