**Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has revealed his shock at one chant issued by Liverpool supporters towards him during the 2-0 loss at Anfield on Sunday.**
The Premier League champions fell into fifth position in the top-flight table following a fourth successive defeat in the division, this time at the hands of Liverpool at Anfield in relatively comfortable fashion.
Manchester City have now failed to win in all of their last seven matches across competitions, with defeats to Tottenham in the Carabao Cup, Sporting CP in the Champions League, as well as Bournemouth, Brighton, Tottenham, and Liverpool in the Premier League.
City did appear to be on the verge of breaking their winless streak when Feyenoord visited the Etihad Stadium last week, only for Guardiola’s side to throw away a three-goal lead in the final 15 minutes of the UEFA Champions League affair.
Speaking to reporters after Manchester City’s defeat on Merseyside on Sunday evening, Pep Guardiola admitted his surprise at Liverpool fans calling for him to be sacked with multiple renditions of, “You’re getting sacked in the morning”, during the second-half.
“Listen, I’m so proud of my six Premier Leagues against that team (Liverpool) and the previous teams, I’m so sorry,” Guardiola said, in relation to him holding up six fingers towards the Anfield crowd referencing his six English top-flight crowns won since 2017.
“I didn’t expect Anfield, at 2-0, started to chant, maybe I deserve to be sacked, honestly, with these results,” Guardiola continued. “Maybe I’m still in a job because we won six Premier Leagues and a lot, a lot of titles.
“Otherwise, the hierarchy maybe would think, ‘Oh this doesn’t work’. But I didn’t expect at 2-0 to start to sing, maybe at 1-0, when the game was a little bit tighter or maybe last season, or the previous season. But maybe in Brighton they did it, and I understand.
“But Anfield I didn’t expect that, but it’s fine. It is what it is, it’s part of the game. When you win, you laugh. When you lose, they laugh. And I have to accept it. They have been an incredible battle, I’ve said many times.”
Pep Guardiola continued by heaping praise on the rivalry developed between Manchester City and Liverpool during Jurgen Klopp’s reign as Anfield boss, describing their match-ups over the years as “unforgettable” on a personal note.
“The time with Jurgen was unforgettable for me, and the battles with Liverpool always have been forever,” said Guardiola. “And I know even winning by a little margin in the Premier League, the team was amazing and they could have happened.
“But unfortunately we were so resistant, so committed, so strong mentally in our best periods, and it helped us to do something magnificent that now this season it will be so difficult to repeat for many times I’ve said.
“But I’m pretty sure the club, all of us, will reflect and try to come strong and it will happen next Wednesday with our fans at the Etihad against Nottingham Forest.”