Liverpool’s victory over Brighton was very important but made even more so because of Manchester City and Arsenal’s losses, leaving us to top the league.
Speaking with Sky Sports, Pep Guardiola explained why he felt his team lost the game and said: “We could not match the intensity of Bournemouth, from the first minute we knew it.
“They have six or seven days [more] to prepare for the game than we had, we had less recovery from the trip from London.
“And we talk about that. We have to increase a little bit our duels in the positions.”
The Spaniard then went on to talk about injuries: “Kyle [Walker], 16 days didn’t train with us until yesterday. Nathan [Ake] made an incredible effort, it’s not just about that [injuries].”
Speaking before the match (via BBC), the former Barcelona coach also said: “we are in an emergency in certain positions” which shows how keen he was to get this narrative going.
It’s true that the side from the Etihad Stadium were missing the likes of Rodri, John Stones, Ruben Dias and Jack Grealish but given the presence of players Jeremy Doku, Kevin de Bruyne and Savinho on the bench at the Vitality Stadium, it’s far from a crisis.
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Manchester City had enough quality for a Bournemouth victory
Watching the reaction of Arne Slot at full time against Brighton, you could see that he knew how important it was for the Reds to record a victory.
Giving praise to our supporters for this happening too, our rivals from down the M62 are never going to compete on this front either.
Just because we’re playing well, our injuries aren’t being discussed but we had as many first team players out as the champions this weekend and somehow still managed to secure victory.
It must be so hard to manage a huge squad of amazing players with a blank cheque book, whilst bending financial rules.
You can watch Guardiola’s comments via @SkySportsPL on X:
‘We could not match the intensity of Bournemouth’
Pep Guardiola reflects on Manchester City’s first Premier League loss this season. pic.twitter.com/6dY9LYTVeY
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) November 2, 2024
Arne Slot’s Liverpool reign is about to be turbocharged as Reds enter rollercoaster fixture sequence
