MX23RW : Friday, November 8 09:15:21| >> :60:2414:2414:
[monks data]
Attendance: 53,922
Manchester City logo
Premier League | Gameweek 11
Nov 2, 2019 at 3pm UK
 
Southampton logo

2-1

Aguero (70'), Walker (86')
FT(HT: 0-1)

Pep Guardiola hails Liverpool's "special character" after late win

Pep Guardiola hails Liverpool's
© Reuters
The 48-year-old showed his frustration by turning into the world's best paid ball boy for much of the second half to keep momentum going.

Pep Guardiola could breath a sigh of relief after Kyle Walker's 86th minute goal saw his Manchester City side escape with a 2-1 win over Southampton on a tough afternoon at the Etihad Stadium.

City were made to toil after the Saints snatched a 13th minute lead when Ederson mis-handled Stuart Armstrong's shot and James Ward-Prowse pounced.

Ralph Hasenhuttl's side, only eight days removed from their 9-0 humbling at home to Leicester and four days on from a 3-1 Carabao Cup loss here on Tuesday night, defended their unexpected lead superbly for 70 minutes, showing bravery and commitment to deny City clear chances.

Their resistance was finally broken when Sergio Aguero turned in Walker's low cross in the 70th minute, and City had the three points when Alex McCarthy could not hold Angelino's cross and Walker slammed the ball home at the far post.

"Football players have pride, they did not want to live again in that position," Guardiola said of Southampton's response to last week's horror show. "It is our job to try and attack them but I knew it in the Carabao Cup.

"Our problem in the last two games is that one team, they suffer, and with their own pride they are not going to accept under any circumstances what happened against Leicester again.

"And after the goal we conceded it is more difficult."

City had 76 per cent possession and a total of 26 shots at goal, but only four of those were on target, all of them after the break.

Guardiola's agitation was obvious as he turned into the world's best paid ball boy for much of the second half, trying to keep the momentum high as City pressed forward, and the Catalan clashed more than once with Southampton's coaches as he tried to retrieve the ball.

"I think we have seen him be a little bit nicer than today," Southampton manager Hasenhuttl said of his opposite number. "That was the reason, because he was a little bit nervous because he could lose this game.

"You saw how much he wanted to win this game. He is a fantastic manager, but he could feel they didn't have any solutions. You can see how much he was celebrating when they scored."

The Austrian left empty-handed but will be happy with the spirit shown by his side, both in this match and Tuesday's 3-1 defeat, given the difficulty of the task they faced in the wake of Friday's loss.

"The squad was unbelievably committed, unbelievable defending, investing so much in defending our net," Hasenhuttl said.

Manchester City v Southampton – Premier League – Etihad Stadium
Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl, left, and Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, right, after the final whistle (Martin Rickett/PA)

"It was very difficult today for Manchester City to create chances. They had a lot of possession, which is normal. It was the only way we could play against this opponent. It is a pity we didn't get more than a few warm words but after last week it was absolutely necessary to show this reaction.

City's win was all the more important as Premier League leaders Liverpool also came from behind to win, equalising in the 87th minute before Sadio Mane scored in the fourth minute of time added on to beat Aston Villa 2-1.

"We won, (but) Liverpool still won," Guardiola said. "When they win so many games in the last minute, it is because of special character. The first season we won with 100 points, we won four or five games in the last minute.

"Against Norwich (a 3-2 defeat in September) we had a lot of chances in the second half and could not convert. Today we scored a goal and that was good."

ID:377227: cacheID:377227:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:9171:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah celebrates scoring against Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on October 27, 2019
Read Next:
Premier League week 11 predictions including Liverpool, Man Utd, Man City
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
FT
Bengals
34-35
Ravens
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!