After a shock defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal before the October 2023 international break, Manchester City are now back to regular programming.
Their latest victim is Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United, who were outclassed at home in the first iteration of the Manchester Derby for the 2023/24 season.
Pep Guardiola’s team looked like they were struggling to keep up their levels after so many victories and even the two-time treble-winning admitted that the weight of expectation was heavy on his and his players’ shoulders. That weight seems to be lighter than ever now after taking three points from Old Trafford with a 3 – 0 victory that could have been more if not for goalkeeping heroics from the much-maligned André Onana.
Guardiola was happy with the outcome of the game but what he focused on was his players’ consistency and professionalism. He lauded his players for staying true to their course, always giving their best and dominating their opponents while Manchester United fans fumed at the performance of their players.
The win at Old Trafford leaves City on 24 points after their first 10 games in the 2023/24 Premier League. They are third, however, behind Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal due to the two losses they suffered before the October international break.
Speaking after the match, Guardiola said: “Football is so difficult and especially maintaining consistency for many years,” he said. “The biggest title we have is this one. After the Treble and five Premier Leagues in six years, still we are there.
“I see the professionalism, the mentality and solidarity when it happens it’s the biggest title we have and it’s so nice to watch the team after what we have done.”
Guardiola also commented on the state of United after the match. The Spaniard left Bayern Munich for Manchester City in 2016 when José Mourinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovich were still at Manchester United. He enjoyed great battles against his derby rivals but totally outclassed them in this fixture.
“I know what we have done. I don’t know what Man Utd have done because I am not here,” he said. “But I didn’t expect it, honestly, when I arrived here with Jose Mourinho [in charge at United], with [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic [up front for United], with top, top players, [Romelu] Lukaku [signed in 2017]…”
He then went on to speak about how City’s ownership has supported him in his tenure, further making those comments a dig at the handling of affairs at his derby rivals.
Guardiola will now turn his attention to Bournemouth next weekend while hoping that Arsenal and Spurs can falter so that he can reclaim the top spot.
