TURIN, Italy (Reuters) – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola remained upbeat after watching his team lose 2-0 at Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday to continue their alarming form slump.
Guardiola’s side anguish 22nd in the Champions League table, only three places out of automatic elimination from the competition with two games remaining.
The Premier League champions have recorded just one victory in their last 10 games across all competitions.
“We played good, really really good,” Guardiola told reporters. “So we missed the last pass, the last action, of course, some transitions happen, but I’m so proud of these players, they give everything and they tried, and now we live in this period, and hopefully we can change and get results.
“I know it’s difficult, it’s difficult in Champions League in Europe, but we play really good.”
City’s last two matches in the group phase are against Paris St Germain and Club Brugge.
The competition’s new format sees the top eight teams after eight rounds of the league phase advance into the round of 16 and avoid a playoff, which is now almost out of reach for Guardiola’s team.
“We have two games. We need one point maybe, one victory, the last one is at home, and the situation is because the game against Feyenoord (when City gave up a 3-0 lead to draw 3-3) and especially Inter Milan (a 0-0 draw),” the Spaniard said.
“But our three games away were really, really, really tough and you have to accept it. And when we turn around, we don’t forget that period, we appreciate more what we have done in the past, what they are going to in the future.”
City host local rivals Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing, editing by Ed Osmond)
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