- The Cityzens are 10 points behind their tally last Christmas after nightmare run
- They lost again at the weekend, slipping to defeat away against Aston Villa
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! Are Tottenham managers treated differently to other managers?
Man City may not have had much to celebrate this season but Pep Guardiola’s men were able to let their hair down at the club’s annual Christmas party.
Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa left City in sixth place in the Premier League.
The reigning champions are nine points behind leaders Liverpool, who have two games in hand.
The club are on an almost unbelievable run of just one win in 12 matches but the party still went ahead as planned.
The likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan appeared to enjoy the occasion with their partners posting black and white pictures on Instagram.
The players were all smiles despite the team’s struggles and will be hoping for a turnaround in the second half of the season.
Ilkay Gundogan (top left) and Bernardo Silva were seen enjoying themselves with their partners Sara Gundogan (bottom right) and Ines Degener Tomaz
Midfieldr Kevin De Bruyne cosied up to his wife Michele Lacroix at the festive event
Gundogan and his wife Sara announced they are expecting their second child in September
City will host Everton on Boxing Day, with an away game against Leicester to follow on December 29.
There will be much focus on whether Guardiola will be able to improve City’s situation and get them back to their best.
Despite City’s struggles, Guardiola appears determined to do his best to help his team get better.
Pep Guardiola has stressed Manchester City’s current malaise is not down to one player as he again defended Erling Haaland.
City’s loss at Villa on Saturday, their ninth defeat in 12, saw Haaland fail to score for the fifth time in six outings.
After the game the Norway striker told TNT Sports: ‘First I’m looking at myself. I haven’t been scoring my chances. I have to do better, I haven’t been good enough.’
City boss Guardiola subsequently stuck up for Haaland, who has netted 108 times for the club since joining in 2022, saying that ‘without him we will be even worse’ and that ‘he needs to be delivered the right balls in the right spots’.
And speaking on Christmas Eve at his press conference ahead of the Boxing Day home clash with Everton, Guardiola said: ‘It’s about us, not just one player.
‘When in the past we score goals and Erling was so prolific, helping us, it was because of the team.
‘And when you have problems at the back, in the middle, it is for everyone, it is a team, it is not about one player. It would be easy, if it was just one player, the reason why. It’s not about that.
‘Erling is so important for us, will be so important for us, has been. (We have to) try to do things better, to use him better.’
