Coach Pep Guardiola: 'Today the better team won'

Pep Guardiola acknowledged Man City was thoroughly outclassed by MU in the Manchester derby, pointing out the absence of energy, weak control, and regarded the 0-2 loss as entirely justified.

Coach Pep Guardiola could not hide his disappointment after Manchester City suffered a 0-2 loss to Manchester United in the Manchester derby on the evening of January 17. According to the Spanish manager, his team was inferior in every aspect and fully deserved to leave Old Trafford empty-handed.

Speaking after the match, Guardiola candidly admitted: “The better team won. In the past 10 years whenever we played away here, today was one of the rare occasions MU completely outperformed us. When the opponent is better, you have to accept it and congratulate them. MU showed energy, intensity, and determination that we lacked.”

The Man City coach believed the biggest weakness of his team was their inability to control transitional moments, traditionally a strength of MU.“We defended poorly in critical moments, failed to control counterattacks. Instead of dissecting every moment, we need to look at the overall game, and the reality is they were better,” Pep explained.

Pep Guardiola also emphasized that Man City failed to “cool down” the match when MU started with high momentum, fueled by the crowd and excitement under their new coach. “We reached the final third multiple times but barely created any threat. No crosses, no decisive movements. That clearly shows a lack of energy,” he said.

When asked about Erling Haaland and signs of fatigue, Pep denied blaming any individual: “It’s not about one player. This is a team issue.”

Regarding the incident where Diogo Dalot fouled Doku, Pep Guardiola admitted it could have been a red card but did not see it as the main reason for the defeat. “If MU had played with fewer men early on, the situation might have been different. But the referee and VAR must decide. We can’t use that as an excuse. To win, Man City must play better, and today we didn’t.”

Facing the risk of Arsenal extending their lead in the standings, Pep Guardiola maintained a long-term perspective. “What matters is how the team develops. We have achieved many good things this season, but there are still issues in some positions. Football is like that; some seasons you can’t win the title. What we need to do is keep analyzing, improving, and moving forward.”

The defeat at Old Trafford not only cost Man City points in the title race but also sounded an alarm about the squad depth and the players’ energy levels.