Pep Guardiola says the mood around Manchester City is “better” but he remains unconvinced the reigning Premier League champions have regained their mojo.
City have won their last three matches, two in the league and thrashed neighbors Salford City 8-0 on Saturday in the FA Cup, emerging from a dismal run that saw just one win in 13 matches.
They head to Brentford tomorrow evening and Guardiola believes the encounter at the Getick Community Stadium will provide a good barometer of the team's progress.
He said: We won three matches. Before that it was impossible to win one.
“Now we've won three, so that helps us. But the fact is that we beat a team in the last game, for many reasons – the difference between the Premier League and League Two, we have to win.
“We did well, but we still have to wait and see if we are where we are, but the mood is better.
Pep: Of course we won three matches. Before it was impossible to win one title and now we have won three titles. This helps us… better mood. We have a very difficult match ahead of us (against Brentford). Thomas (Frank) and his team always create a lot of problems. They are amazing,… pic.twitter.com/Uc02SWKDgx
– Manchester City (@ManCity) January 13, 2025
“Tomorrow we have a very difficult game. With what has happened in recent seasons, it is always the team that creates a lot of problems. They have spent a long time with Thomas (Frank).
“They are a great team but at the same time we know what we are playing for.”
No update on Walker
The weekend's victory was overshadowed by the news that Kyle Walker had requested to leave City to pursue his career abroad.
Milan are reportedly leading the race for the England right-back, but Guardiola refused to talk about Walker's future today, adding: “No, no news. I will decide (whether he will be in the squad against Brentford) this afternoon after training.
“I won't add anything else. I don't have any news. It's Brentford on my mind.
Pep says injuries have prompted a rethink of transfers
City have reportedly agreed a fee with Lens for defender Abdulkader Khosanov, while young Palmeiras midfielder Vitor Reis and Eintracht Frankfurt striker Omar Marmoush are also targets.
Guardiola was not keen on discussing transfer issues but admitted that injuries could force them into the market.
He said: “This is what I want (the players returning from injury). “If that had happened, we wouldn't have gone into the transfer window this season, certainly not. We wouldn't be in the position we are in. But we struggled all season.
“We had a lot of problems especially in the back line and we still have them, which is why the club is thinking about what we will do in this transfer window or maybe in the summer.
“Since the start of the season, he has been at the back and in the middle. “The positions up front are pretty good, but at the back all season we struggled a lot.”
