Pep Guardiola Urges Man City Players to Self-Reflect If They Lack Motivation

Pep Guardiola has challenged Erling Haaland and the Manchester City squad to think about their commitment this season. After Haaland, who is now fully recovered from his injury, pointed out that the team has not shown the motivation to succeed, Guardiola encouraged his players to evaluate themselves.

Despite recent improvements in form—unbeaten in seven matches and currently third in the league—City’s goals have shifted to securing a top-five finish and aiming for the FA Cup, which is a departure from their previous era of dominance with six Premier League titles in seven years and a treble win in 2023.

Guardiola emphasized the need for sustained performance, suggesting that while recent results are promising, genuine hunger will only be evident over a longer period. Haaland, currently the team’s leading scorer with 30 goals, is set to play again as City faces relegated Southampton. Although Guardiola has stated that he is healthy and ready to play, the ultimate determination of whether he will start will be made closer to the game.

As City approaches this pivotal match, Guardiola is still cautious about taking Southampton lightly despite their poor league performance this season.The importance of earning points in the last games was emphasized by him. Mateta’s performance against Spurs this season, when he scored the game-winning goal in their previous meeting, has given the team more confidence. Mateta’s performance against Spurs this season, when he scored the game-winning goal in their previous meeting, has given the team more confidence.

All things considered, this team has a fantastic mix of attacking ability and defensive consistency, making it set for an exciting clash with the Spurs. The defensive backline, which consists of Marc Guehi, Chris Richards, and Maxence Lacroix, will provide a strong barrier in front of goalie Dean Henderson. The club will have extra goalkeeping depth because Henderson’s backup, Matt Turner, who was ineligible for the previous game, will be available for selection again.