EPL: Manchester City face rare challenge from local rivals

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola faces a tough challenge against local rivals on Monday. Photo / Photosport

Riddled with anxiety about Manchester City’s shocking decline, Pep Guardiola will endure another sleepless night as he tries to pose more problems for Ruben Amorim in the Manchester United manager’s first taste of the Premier League’s most explosive rivalry.

For the first time in years, City go into the Manchester derby mired in even more turmoil than United after a dismal run of one win in 10 games in all competitions. The two sides play at 5.30am on Monday (NZT).

Last week’s 2-0 Champions League defeat at Juventus was City’s seventh loss in that period, an astonishing collapse for a club that has won six of the last seven Premier League titles, including their current streak of four in a row.

United are hardly in peak form themselves, having won just three of Amorim’s six games in charge since he replaced the sacked Erik ten Hag.

But Amorim has already inflicted one painful blow to Guardiola this season when his Sporting side crushed City 4-1 in the Champions League in Lisbon on November 5.

City squandered an early lead on that occasion, blown away by Viktor Gyokeres’ hat-trick as Amorim ruthlessly exposed the gaping holes in Guardiola’s ramshackle defence.

That chastening loss came just days before Amorim officially took charge at Old Trafford and Guardiola would love to exact revenge at the Etihad Stadium this weekend.

Whether Guardiola’s injury-plagued team, whose confidence appears to be in tatters, are in any shape to deliver a sixth win in their last seven league meetings with United is another matter.

The strain of the worst run of his glittering managerial career is taking a toll on Guardiola as well.

In an interview before the Juventus game, Guardiola said his state of mind was “ugly”, his sleep was “worse” and he was eating lighter as his digestion has suffered during City’s collapse.

On Friday, Guardiola, who recently signed a new two-year contract, insisted he was “fine” despite the stress.

‘In a better place than us’

“In our jobs we always want to do our best. When that doesn’t happen you are more uncomfortable than when the situation is going well,” said Guardiola, who could have just three fit defenders available tomorrow.

“In good moments I am happier but when I get to the next game I am still concerned about what I have to do.

“There is no human being that makes an activity and it doesn’t matter how they do.”

There is no question another loss to Amorim would be a huge blow for Guardiola, whose fourth-placed side are eight points behind leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand.

Yet Amorim has plenty of issues of his own to resolve after a rocky first month in Manchester featuring only one league victory in four matches.

United are languishing in 13th place after successive league losses to Arsenal and Nottingham Forest underlined the extent of the rebuilding job faced by Amorim.

They struggled to find any fluency in a nervy 2-1 victory at minnows Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Friday.

Given United’s mediocrity before and since his arrival, Amorim is in no position to cast aspersions about City’s woes.

“I never think about these things. We will face a great opponent and I’m more focused on our problems, so we have a lot of issues here,” he said.

“I’m more focused on what we should do on [Monday] to win the game, so I’m really focused on my team.”

And the 39-year-old believes City are capable of hitting back if United allow them to rediscover their rhythm amid the sound and fury of the derby.

“The great teams can respond in any moment. I think they are in a better place than us in the type of understanding the game,” he said.

“The way they play, the confidence they have. Even in these kind of moments.”