Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, has admitted he would understand if the Premier League champions decided to sack him following a miserable run of form.
City has won only once in their last 10 matches following the 2-0 defeat at Juventus on Wednesday.
Guardiola’s men currently sit 22nd in the Champions League table, five points off the automatic qualification places with two games left and they are also fourth in the league, eight points behind leaders Liverpool, who also have a game in hand.
Guardiola has been hugely successful since taking over City in 2016 and has not experienced such a dramatic dip in form before. City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan said low confidence and a “mental issue” was behind the current struggles, which are threatening to derail their season.
Guardiola rejected Gundogan’s assessment after the loss in Turin and was characteristically defensive of his side, insisting they played well against Juve, but gave a revealing picture into his personal life, which is being affected by his team’s poor form.
Speaking to his former Brescia team-mate Luca Toni on Prime Video Sport, Guardiola said: “Do Man City send me home? If so, I go home. What can you do in life? Life doesn’t always go the way one wants.”
He was also asked about the scratch mark on his nose and head, which had made headlines last month. “The nails, yes I did them on my nose,” Guardiola said. “I am a person who is nervous sometimes. I have bad days, I mess up a lot, and rudeness makes me nervous. Do I lose my mind sometimes? Yes.
“I sleep badly and I don’t digest food well. I always have to eat light. Only soup in the evening. But I am the same coach as I was five months ago. The one who had won the title, and I don’t fight my state of mind. If my state of mind is ugly, then it is ugly. But I know it will pass. The same is true when I am overjoyed. I know it will pass.
“I sincerely believe that it will be a year with great difficulties. We have to find continuity. But if we make it through, it won’t be easy for someone to face us.”
Guardiola was in a reflective mood in his post-match press conference too. “Of course I question myself but I’m stable in good moments and bad moments,” he said. “I try to find a way to do it. I’m incredibly honest. If we play good [I say] we played good and today I thought we played good.
