Guardiola Frustrated By Southampton’s Defensive Tactics

Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola slammed Southampton’s defensive performance in the 0-0 draw between both sides on Saturday.

The relegated hosts frustrated Man City with their defensive performance to earn a rare draw, which took their tally to 12 points on the Premier League log.

Manchester City recorded 26 shots, while Southampton could only manage two, without any on target, in the encounter.

Guardiola was disappointed as Man City missed out on the opportunity to level on points with second-placed Arsenal.

Guardiola said, “In the second half, we were much better, much more incisive, especially with the wingers. We brought players into the box.

“(But) they were so, so deep. I did expect it, but they defended there with 11 players in that penalty area, and it was not easy to break them down. We needed that quality at the right moment. We had four or five chances in the last few minutes, but we could not score.

“What happened is, of course, when we were on the sides, the full-backs and wingers were completely different, the players in the middle were not much in the box, and we needed the quality. We could not do it; they were so defensive. It’s difficult to break them down. Today, that was the case.

“Didn’t expect them to defend so deep. Defensively, we were so good, but unfortunately, we missed the last actions.

“He [Erling Haaland] didn’t expect to play as many minutes, but the way the game was played, we needed people in the box. That point was really important.”

Similarly, Man City defender Ruben Dias also accused Southampton of not trying to play football as the draw moved them to 12 points.

He said, “It’s frustrating. Every point matters right now until the end, and it’s frustrating to play a team like them. They don’t even try to play. They just wasted time the whole game.

“I don’t even feel like they want to play the game or win the game. They’re just sitting around. But it is what it is. We tried every way. We had chances, but we didn’t score. It is what it is. We didn’t score, so we took the draw and we moved forward.”

Up next for Manchester City is a clash against Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final next Saturday at Wembley.

Guardiola Frustrated By Southampton’s Defensive Tactics is first published on The Whistler Newspaper