Man City 3-3 Feyenoord: Pep Guardiola's side throw away 3-0 lead in final 15 minutes to extend winless run to six
- Man City endured another dismal result in the Champions League on Tuesday
- Liverpool correspondent LEWIS STEELE tells all on bombshell chat with Mo Salah - LISTEN NOW to It's All Kicking Off! New episodes every Monday and Thursday
Will they ever win again? It’s all right, only Liverpool away next for Manchester City. Only the prospect of falling 11 points behind their title rivals. Only another avenue into ignominy waiting menacingly.
City are stuck down the darkest of alleys, nervously inching forwards and back, constantly chipping their glistening paintwork. More self-inflicted damage, three goals clear against inferior opposition with 15 minutes of a crucial Champions League fixture and not winning.
Forget Tottenham, this was worse. Inexcusable, unforgivable, defensive mistakes born out of five consecutive defeats and no confidence in themselves to see a game through once the Dutch nicked a goal back. The brutal reality is that Pep Guardiola, who said his response to adversity has been to scratch his nose so vigorously that it’s drawn blood, has some job on his hands now.
A job not only finding solutions to a misshapen midfield or ploughing on with a squad full of half-fit players. A job to pick up bruised egos and personalities who look shell-shocked, squabbling with each other. As David Hancko scored Feyenoord’s third with a minute left – after Ederson had rushed out and missed his chance to clear – Erling Haaland was seen just staring into the distance. Staring at the wreckage.
And a right old wreckage it was too. Josko Gvardiol gifted the first two, hot on the heels of his disasterclass at the weekend. Guardiola had brought on teenager Jahmai Simpson-Pusey at 3-0, City coasting to a morale-boosting win after their recent malaise, but the teenager can’t take the blame. The senior lads let City down again.
If this wasn’t a crisis before – and let’s not beat about the bush, labelling it anything else would have been kind – then City’s November certainly is now. A portion of the Etihad Stadium jeered at full time and this is a place that is never prone to booing. Not doing so last night would have seemed a bit weird, truth be told, because winning before does not preclude supporters venting frustration at the ridiculous.
Manchester City's winless run continued in astonishing circumstances on Tuesday night
The Premier League champions were three goals ahead before drawing 3-3 with Feyenoord
Pep Guardiola's side may have ended their five-game losing streak but it's another poor result
Uncharted territory. Guardiola might outwardly say that this sort of dip was always in the back of his mind, and in fairness there have been enough warnings down the years, but there comes an upset with such a galling run.
The shock will reverberate all week now until Anfield. ‘I have to lift them,’ Guardiola said with fair amount of understate. City could win at Liverpool on Sunday because this is City and this is Guardiola. The odds, though, are slightly longer than normal – especially after this. That side of Stanley Park is not their favoured destination, winning just once there since 2003 and never in front of a crowd.
Even before the late drama, the capitulation, there had been signs that while City were cruising, they had given up moments that might have been pounced upon in the Premier League.
He talked on Monday about performances now becoming more important than results – although in the next breath is claiming that the only disappointing display has come in defeat at Bournemouth – and the visit of a team fourth in the Eredivisie could hardly have offered a better opportunity.
Feyenoord, whose rowdy following had pounded through the Manchester streets in the afternoon cheekily chanting You’ll Never Walk Alone and about Arne Slot, picked up notable Champions League victories away at City’s sister club Girona and Benfica. And yet, there were few more appealing opponents Guardiola could have picked.
Even so, a failure to capitalise at one end after a quick start and reminders of their porosity at the other lingered long before the last act of City’s latest tragedy.
Josko Gvardiol was required to quickly cover when Manuel Akanji jumped out from the back four in an attempt to win an unwinnable duel. The Swiss later daydreamed, allowing an easy through ball for Igor Paixao, only for the winger to panic and clip straight at Ederson. Opposition here wait for those singular moments and punish them; Feyenoord were given so many that they would eventually.
City led seconds before the break and all seemed well. Either Quinten Timber kicked Haaland or Antoni Milambo handled a shot at a scrappy corner – both of those are always given by officials – and City’s No 9 stroked in the penalty to become the youngest man to reach 45 goals in this competition. Haaland ran toward the net nonchalantly and battered it in again, just to be sure.
The Norwegian scored twice to put Manchester City in full control early in the second half
His first-half penalty was added to by midfielder Ilkay Gundogan early in the second half
The blitz continued as Haaland netted again to make it two goals in three minutes for the hosts
David Hancko completed Feyenoord's sensational comeback with a goal in the 89th minute
Haaland appeared chirpier thereafter, sharing a joke with Feyenoord coach Brian Priske, and had his seconds eight minutes into the second half. This was more like City, Matheus Nunes sprinting clear and picking out the Norwegian – hurling every stretched limb at the drilled cross. That was their third of the evening, Ilkay Gundogan’s volley deflecting in from a corner three minutes prior.
Then the final ‘three episodes’ as Guardiola called them. The defensive catastrophes. Gvardiol obliged with an awkward bouncing hook back to Ederson. Anis Hadj Moussa fancied it, rounded the goalkeeper and popped into the far post.
Number one. This should have been absolutely no problems for a team of City’s experience and mental fortitude. Nothing more than an annoyance, just keep the ball and get out of there and nestle into the table’s top eight. What happened next makes finishing there, and avoiding a February play-off, very uncertain.
Gvardiol was not done. He handed possession away on the edge of his own box and then helpless to stop the visitors carving an unlikely second goal, Jordan Lotomba managing to keep the move alive at the byline, squeezing past Ederson and into the path of Santiago Gimenez.
It felt embarrassing but ultimately immaterial because surely City would be professional enough to see it through? Wrong. City were shot and, with seconds left, Paixao galloped down the right wing – beating a rushing Ederson - and floated something for Hancko to attack. Hancko beat Rico Lewis, finding the net. City dropped to the floor. It’ll take a while to haul themselves back up.
Still, at least the run of defeats ended.
