Pep Guardiola admitted he had been the architect of Manchester City’s downfall after his heavily rotated side fell to a 2-0 Uefa Champions League defeat against an impressive Bayer Leverkusen at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night.
Guardiola, who made 10 changes from the weekend’s Premier League loss to Newcastle United, left Erling Haaland, Phil Foden and Gianluigi Donnarumma among a star-studded collection of substitutes.
But the gamble backfired as City produced one of their flattest displays of the season, undone by goals from Alejandro Grimaldo and Patrik Schick.
“Too many changes,” Guardiola conceded, laying the blame squarely at his own feet. “I always believed that in long seasons, every two days, everyone has to be involved, but maybe it was too much. Seeing the result, they played not to make mistakes instead of playing how we had to play.”
Grimaldo’s 23rd-minute finish capped a clinical Leverkusen counter-attack, and although Guardiola made a triple substitution at half-time, Schick doubled the visitors’ lead eight minutes after the restart. Even with Foden, Rayan Cherki and Nico O’Reilly introduced to restore order, City never found their rhythm.
“We were close but not aggressive enough,” Guardiola said. “They are a really good team. I take absolutely the responsibility … When you are a football player and don’t play for five, six, seven games it’s tough, but maybe it was too much.”
The City manager stopped short of criticising the squad’s depth, insisting his instincts had told him the players deserved a chance.
“It’s impossible to think they are not good,” he said. “I felt the team was training well, incredible vibes … but Erling cannot play 95 minutes every three days. It was the first time in my life I’ve done this and it was too much. I realise now.”
Leverkusen manager Kasper Hjulmand rejected the suggestion that Guardiola had underestimated his side. “It’s a very tight schedule. Normal rotation in the Champions League is around 5.5 players,” he said. “This time it was more, but no matter who they put on the pitch, it’s a quality team.”
City loanee Claudio Echeverri, still only 19, was an unused substitute for the visitors amid speculation he may be recalled in January due to limited game time. Hjulmand was adamant the club remain committed to his development. “We like Claudio, we’re happy to have him,” he said. “We are trying to build a young player with great potential.”
Howe defends Newcastle keeper Pope
While City were left searching for answers, Newcastle United’s European hopes also suffered a bruising setback after a 2-1 defeat away to Marseille.
Eddie Howe defended goalkeeper Nick Pope after the England international’s misjudged charge allowed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to round him and score from a tight angle seconds after half-time.
Aubameyang struck again four minutes later to overturn Harvey Barnes’s early opener, sparking a raucous response inside the Stade Vélodrome and denying Newcastle a fourth consecutive win in Europe.
“It’s a concern when we concede goals regardless of who’s at fault,” Howe said. “He saved us many times. He made some really good saves against Manchester City just two days ago. That’s the life of a goalkeeper. I’ll certainly back him.”
Newcastle had opportunities to extend their advantage before the interval, but the momentum swung sharply after Aubameyang’s equaliser.
“We did not react to the goal,” Howe reflected. “We were on the back foot and the crowd came into it. Then we were not at our best.”
The Magpies continue to struggle away from home – their record now stands at one win in eight attempts this season – and Howe admitted their approach must evolve, especially with challenging fixtures looming.
“We need the intent to go for more goals,” he said. “Maybe our press was not as intense as it has been. One-nil is a delicate scoreline and we did not defend well enough. The result leaves us bruised, but we have great games ahead.”
Aubameyang, who reached his 400th career goal at the weekend, said his confidence was flowing after adding two more to his tally.
“Hopefully a lot more,” the 36-year-old Gabonese said. “I’m feeling great. When you live these types of games, of course, you want to play more and score more … It was very important, especially at home, for the fans and for us.”
The defeat leaves Newcastle in eighth place – the final cut-off for automatic qualification to the knockout stages – on nine points with City sixth on 10 points.
Bayern Munich meet Arsenal in a top-of-the-table clash on Wednesday.
