Manchester City’s quest to conquer Europe finally resumed on Wednesday when Pep Guardiola’s men traveled to RB Leipzig, but all was not well for the English champions on or off the pitch.
City looked to have made their mark in the Premier League title race by beating leaders Arsenal 3-1 last week, only to drop two points with a 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
They are also playing under the cloud after being charged with more than 100 financial breaches by the Premier League, dating back to the 2009/10 season.
Defender Kyle Walker described City’s recklessness in relinquishing top spot in the Premier League at the weekend as “unacceptable”.
“Sometimes it’s football and sometimes it’s emotional,” he said. “Every game should be treated the same – like a cup final.”
The two-point deficit at the top of the table could become five if Arsenal win their game against struggling Everton.
The lack of consistency in City’s performances bothered Guardiola before the team made a comeback in the most coveted competition.
City have never won the Champions League, while Guardiola, who won the trophy twice as Barcelona manager, has not done so since 2011, his penultimate season at Camp Nou.
The signing of Erling Haaland is expected to be the final piece to complete City’s puzzle in Europe.
The Norwegian has achieved the desired goal, with 32 in all competitions. But Haaland’s arrival is one of the factors used to explain City’s collective decline this season.
The defending champions have dropped 20 points in 24 games – compared to 21 points in the entire 2021/22 campaign.
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Despite Haaland, City have scored more goals as a team at this stage last season.
Defensively, he also looked more exposed – a problem not helped by Guardiola’s willingness to let Joao Cancelo join Bayern Munich on loan, leaving them without a left-back.
Nathan Ake, Aymeric Laporte, Rico Lewis and even the creative midfielder Bernardo Silva have been shunted out to do the job on the left side of the defense in just two weeks ago.
Guardiola said he was pleased with City’s display at Forest despite lacking the killer instinct that earned them two points.
However, he has not been slow to call on his players since the World Cup break due to a lack of hunger and desire to stay at the top in England, which is an unusual approach for the former Barca and Bayern Munich coach.
Finding that motivation for the Champions League is not difficult. Third-choice goalkeeper Scott Carson is the only member of Guardiola’s squad to have won the competition before while he was at Liverpool.
“We will follow,” goalkeeper Ederson said of City’s bid to win the Champions League.
“I think it’s a good quality group and it shows how the club has developed over the last five or six years, with the Premier League title, the Carabao (League) Cup, the FA Cup, the Community Shield.
“So this title is what the club needs. This is what the athletes need and also what Guardiola needs at the club. This year, we will try. We will follow.
There may be an extra incentive not to know that City could get another chance to play in the Champions League thanks to the financial breach charges earlier this month.
If City are found guilty, a heavy points penalty or even relegation could be on the cards for the club who have played in Europe’s elite competition for 12 consecutive seasons.