Man City hopes dealt big blow with loss at Juventus
Manchester City’s current malaise continued on Wednesday as they were beaten by Juventus to deal a big blow to their hopes of reaching the Champions League knockout stage.
Dusan Vlahovic’s header and Weston McKennie’s volley in the second half secured all three points for the home side, boosting their own hopes of progressing automatically to the next stage as one of the top eight sides in the league phase of the competition.
But the defeat meant Manchester City have won just one of their last 10 games in all competitions, with this their seventh loss during that run.
It leaves them 22nd in the Champions League table with just two games remaining – away to Paris St-Germain on 22 January and at home to Club Brugge a week later.
The sides finishing ninth to 24th qualify for a two-legged play-off but this defeat leaves Manchester City just one point clear of PSG in 25th.
This was another game where Manchester City looked considerably below the level they have been capable of playing in recent seasons.
They didn’t register a shot on target until just before half-time, when Erling Haaland was played in behind the defence by Kevin de Bruyne, but his shot was saved by Michele di Gregorio.
It all went wrong for Manchester City in the second half when Vlahovic’s header squirmed over the line after a scramble, before substitute McKennie fired in from Timothy Weah’s cross as the visitors left gaps while pushing for an equaliser.
Ilkay Gundogan had forced a good save out of Di Gregorio but Pep Guardiola’s side ultimately did not offer enough as their poor run of form continued.
In addition to it being a blow to City’s hopes in Europe it was also not ideal preparation for Sunday’s Manchester derby at Etihad Stadium.
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