MANCHESTER: Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola is rarely one to point the finger at his players and despite a calamitous 3-3 draw at home to Feyenoord in the Champions League on Tuesday after they threw away a three-goal lead the Spaniard stuck by his team again.
City find themselves in uncharted territory, now mired in a six-game slump after they arrived at the Etihad Stadium for Tuesday's match on the heels of five straight losses, including a 4-0 rout by Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
It was another miserable night as defensive blunders saw Feyenoord strike three times inside 15 minutes and what could have been a confidence boost for City turned into anything but.
"It was not necessary to say anything to (the players), they know it perfectly," Guardiola said. "It is what it is, difficult to swallow now. We give away especially the first one and after we are not stable enough."
A double from Erling Haaland and a goal from Ilkay Gundogan had the home fans cheering before Anis Hadj Moussa pulled one back for Feyenoord in the 75th minute when he pounced on a terrible back pass from their Croatia defender Josko Gvardiol.
Another sloppy pass by the 22-year-old led to Santiago Gimenez making it 3-2 seven minutes later before David Hancko equalised for the Dutch side in the 89th minute.
"He is so young, he'll learn," Guardiola said of Gvardiol, who looked distraught after Feyenoord's second goal. .".. I'll be so wrong if I point specific things at him. He's a fantastic player, fantastic boy and more than ever must be helped."
At the end of the game the crowd booed City, who dropped to 15th in the 36-team table on eight points, two points off the top eight who qualify automatically for the last 16, with the next 16 sides entering a two-leg playoff to try to join them.
"They come here not to remember the success in the past, but to see the team win," Guardiola said of the shell-shocked City supporters. "Of course they are completely right to express what they feel. Of course (they are) disappointed."
Feyenoord manager Brian Priske was beaming with pride after his team became the first in Champions League history to draw after trailing by three goals as late as the 75th minute.
"I just love that word resilience and that's what these boys have," he said.
Guardiola's side next face one of their toughest tests of the season when they visit Premier League leaders Liverpool on Sunday. A loss would leave City 11 points adrift of the Reds.
Asked if he could lift his players for a mammoth challenge, Guardiola said: "We have to, we have to. It's my job." — REUTERS