Manager says his players will learn and improve as the season progresses
Pep Guardiola admitted Manchester City lacked aggression in their 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa but insisted he was encouraged by his side’s all-round progress despite suffering their first loss in two months.
City were unbeaten in nine matches across all competitions but saw that run ended by Matty Cash’s first-half strike at Villa Park. It has halted their momentum after recovering from consecutive defeats to Tottenham and Brighton in August.
“We started a really good game,” said Guardiola. “In general, we were much better in the second half but in the end we could not score.
“In the first half the pressing wasn’t good, in the second half it was better but we were not aggressive enough.”
Aston Villa managed the game well but City had a few chances they failed to convert. Erling Haaland, who had scored in 12 straight games before Sunday, looked like he had snatched a late equaliser but it was ruled out for offside in the build-up.
“We will improve,” said Guardiola. “I am satisfied. We played really good in the Premier League mainly and we’re getting better.
“We will learn from that. It is a long journey. We will try to be close at the end.”
