Manchester City
boss Pep Guardiola has defended his "amazing" players, and admitted:
"Maybe I am not good enough for them."
City have lacked
consistency since opening the season with 10 successive wins, and Guardiola
conceded defeat in the title race after 4-0 loss at Everton left
them 10 points behind Premier League leaders Chelsea.
Their form has
raised questions of the quality of Guardiola's squad and whether he believes he
has the right players. This is something he resents.
He said: "They
are good players. I have respect for the guys, so why would I say the guys are
not good?
"So I don't
understand the lack of respect for the professionals when they have been
amazing players, and (people saying) they are not good enough for me. Maybe I
am not good enough for them.
"They are
Manchester City players, top players. They have a lot of quality. They have
shown that many times in the past and this season."
One player who has
come in for particularly regular criticism is goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, who was
controversially brought in by Guardiola to replace England number one Joe Hart
earlier in the campaign.
The 33-year-old
Chilean did not make a single save last week as Everton scored from all four of
their shots at Goodison Park, but Guardiola feels he himself must shoulder some
of the blame for that.
Guardiola has not
settled on a regular defensive line this term, making numerous changes in terms
of both personnel and formation.
Asked if this may
have been an issue, Guardiola said: "Maybe, maybe. Yes, maybe. Yes, (I
take) all the responsibility as a manager.
"I never in my
life - never - say the reason why we lost is because of Claudio Bravo. It's one
of the reasons why, but there are many many other reasons why.
"Maybe the
reason why is because we changed the defence - maybe - but we will never know
that."
Reference: Talksport
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