Guardiola has 'incredible trust' in misfiring Man City stars

Pep Guardiola has "incredible trust" in his misfiring Manchester City superstars, as he backed the Premier League champions to rediscover their form.

City slipped to a 2-1 loss to Aston Villa on Saturday, as their dismal run continued.

They have now lost nine of their last 12 games in all competitions.

For the first time under Guardiola, City are winless in five consecutive Premier League away games (D1 L4), last failing to win more consecutive such matches in December 2015 (six) under Manuel Pellegrini.

But Guardiola, who was dealt a blow earlier this week when centre-back Ruben Dias went down injured, has not lost faith in a squad that has achieved so much.

"It depends on us," said Guardiola, as reported by BBC Sport. "The solution is [to] bring the players back [from injury].

"We have just one central defender fit, that is difficult.

@ErlingHaaland's post-match reflection.

— Manchester City (@ManCity) December 21, 2024

"We are going to try in the next game, [for] another opportunity and we don't think much further than that.

"We are conceding the goals we haven't conceded in the past, we [don't] score the goals we score in the past. Football is not just one reason. There are a lot of little factors.

"Last season we won the Premier League, but we came here [Villa Park] and lost. We have to think positively and I have incredible trust in the guys.

"Some of them have incredible pride and desire to do it. We have to find a way, step by step, sooner or later to find a way back."

City's latest defeat left them sixth, nine points behind league leaders Liverpool, who have two games in hand.

Their previous nine defeats in all competitions prior to this terrible run came across a run of 112 games, while only in 2019-20 (12) and 2016-17 (10) has a Guardiola side lost more matches in a single season (nine in 2024-25).