Manchester United’s season hasn’t gone according to plan at all but they’re at least getting some joy in seeing their rivals suffer as well, if only contextually!
Liverpool were recently eliminated from the FA Cup by Championship’s basement team, Plymouth Argyle, while Man City’s season has gone off the rails as well.
The latest blow to Man City’s season came in the Champions League when Real Madrid made their signature comeback in Europe to beat Pep Guardiola’s men 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium.
Guardiola has caught a lot of flak for talking about injuries, with comparisons to how Erik ten Hag endured the same last season to no sympathy.
After the game, Guardiola made a Man Utd comparison for this game which shows United remain fresh in his mind!
Pep Guardiola, Manager of Manchester City, reacts during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Knockout Play-off First Leg Press Conference at M...
Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images
Pep Guardiola’s Man Utd comparison
City led against Madrid in the 80th minute when Erling Haaland dispatched a penalty successfully for his second goal of the game.
After that, Madrid’s Champions League aura took over, with the first blow coming via Brahim Diaz, once at City, before Jude Bellingham hit an injury-time winner.
It was reminiscent of United’s game at the Etihad Stadium in December when United turned the game around in three minutes courtesy of Bruno Fernandes’ 88th-minute penalty and Amad’s winner in the 90th minute.
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The similarity wasn’t lost on Guardiola, for whom that defeat remains fresh in his mind as he compared this game to the Manchester derby,
He said: “After 2-1, it happened [in many games] this season [collapse to lose]. Against Feyenoord, Sporting, Brentford, and Man Utd in the Premier League. In the end, we give it away.
“We give it away ourselves and at this level, it’s so difficult. Unfortunately, it’s not the first time it happened. It has happened many times.”
Man Utd didn’t have Man City’s luxury last season
When City were struck by injuries this season, they went out and splurged nearly £200 million in a generally restrictive January window.
That hasn’t translated to better results which puts into perspective the situation Ten Hag found himself in but got constantly ridiculed for bringing it up.
Just the absence of a single player, Rodri in Man City’s case, has seen them fall apart like a house of cards while Ten Hag last season soldiered on and won the FA Cup against City with a patched-up squad that had players rushing back from injury just to put an XI out there.
Ruben Amorim hasn’t had that bad an injury luck this season but people will again underestimate what the absence of someone like Lisandro Martinez can do to a whole setup, especially when new ideas are being implemented.
At least United fans can take some glee from the fact that their marquee win at the Etihad still remains at the front of the City manager’s mind!