Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini played down the significance of his side's midweek trip to Abu Dhabi after they were humbled 2-0 at home by Middlesbrough in the FA Cup.
The Premier League champions, FA Cup finalists in two of the past four seasons, were well beaten on Saturday by a Middlesbrough side currently second in the division below them.
City decided to take the seven-hour return flight from the Middle East on Friday and the squad were pictured leaving Manchester Airport at 8pm GMT (midnight UAE), just 19 hours before kick-off against Middlesbrough.
But Pellegrini refused to accept that the training camp in the UAE, where City’s owners are based, had had any bearing on the result.
“I don’t think so. I don’t agree,” the Chilean told journalists at the Etihad Stadium. “You can have your opinion, but I have a different opinion because we had six or seven clear chances to score a goal.
“I repeat, you can have different reasons for a result. You must analyse the game, but if you think that’s the reason, I have a different opinion about that.”
Nevertheless, furious City fans took to social media to express their dissatisfaction, ahead of a visit to league leaders Chelsea next weekend that could leave their side eight points off the pace in the title race.
“We don’t have any problem with motivation,” said Pellegrini, whose side had lost 2-0 at home to Arsenal in their previous home game. “We are going to work hard and hope that we can win that game at Stamford Bridge.
“It is not normal for us not to score for the last two games here at home, but that is for football reasons more than Abu Dhabi and other things that you are talking about this defeat.
“The problem is we had to change our style because we didn’t have any strikers fit for around a month. After that, the strikers are coming back and they need time to have their best performance and we have to return to the way we normally play. Maybe we need some time.”
City have now conceded two goals in four of their last five games and fit-again club captain Vincent Kompany does not look back to his best in the heart of his team’s defence.
But City are also failing to score goals and convert chances.
Against Middlesbrough, they found stand-in goalkeeper Tomas Mejias in outstanding form and were then duly beaten by goals from Patrick Bamford and Kike.
“I am concerned, not because it’s the Chelsea game coming up,” Pellegrini added. “I’m concerned because in the last two games we haven’t scored at home and in the last four games we have conceded two goals.
“We need to adjust to what we were doing in December and recover the performances we were doing then, in attack and defence.”
Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka, in charge of the north-east club for just 14 months, understandably considered the victory the best of his short spell in English football.
He also said that, unlike the hosts, his side had done nothing out of the ordinary in their preparations for the tie.
“No, it was a normal Championship week for us,” said the former Real Madrid defender. “We had three games in one week, so the best way to prepare for the games is by playing and resting.
“We have won the three games and that’s because we rested and have a squad where you can find 11 players ready to play.”
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What should do investors do now?
What does the S&P 500's new all-time high mean for the average investor?
Should I be euphoric?
No. It's fine to be pleased about hearty returns on your investments. But it's not a good idea to tie your emotions closely to the ups and downs of the stock market. You'll get tired fast. This market moment comes on the heels of last year's nosedive. And it's not the first or last time the stock market will make a dramatic move.
So what happened?
It's more about what happened last year. Many of the concerns that triggered that plunge towards the end of last have largely been quelled. The US and China are slowly moving toward a trade agreement. The Federal Reserve has indicated it likely will not raise rates at all in 2019 after seven recent increases. And those changes, along with some strong earnings reports and broader healthy economic indicators, have fueled some optimism in stock markets.
"The panic in the fourth quarter was based mostly on fears," says Brent Schutte, chief investment strategist for Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company. "The fundamentals have mostly held up, while the fears have gone away and the fears were based mostly on emotion."
Should I buy? Should I sell?
Maybe. It depends on what your long-term investment plan is. The best advice is usually the same no matter the day — determine your financial goals, make a plan to reach them and stick to it.
"I would encourage (investors) not to overreact to highs, just as I would encourage them not to overreact to the lows of December," Mr Schutte says.
All the same, there are some situations in which you should consider taking action. If you think you can't live through another low like last year, the time to get out is now. If the balance of assets in your portfolio is out of whack thanks to the rise of the stock market, make adjustments. And if you need your money in the next five to 10 years, it shouldn't be in stocks anyhow. But for most people, it's also a good time to just leave things be.
Resist the urge to abandon the diversification of your portfolio, Mr Schutte cautions. It may be tempting to shed other investments that aren't performing as well, such as some international stocks, but diversification is designed to help steady your performance over time.
Will the rally last?
No one knows for sure. But David Bailin, chief investment officer at Citi Private Bank, expects the US market could move up 5 per cent to 7 per cent more over the next nine to 12 months, provided the Fed doesn't raise rates and earnings growth exceeds current expectations. We are in a late cycle market, a period when US equities have historically done very well, but volatility also rises, he says.
"This phase can last six months to several years, but it's important clients remain invested and not try to prematurely position for a contraction of the market," Mr Bailin says. "Doing so would risk missing out on important portfolio returns."
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City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
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