Guardiola defends Man City’s season with after trophyless run

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has defended his team’s underwhelming 2024–25 campaign by citing their Community Shield win as a notable achievement, despite the club facing a trophyless season for the first time in eight years.

The Catalan coach highlighted that among English teams likely to qualify for next season’s Champions League, only City, Liverpool, and Newcastle have lifted silverware this term.

City’s only piece of silverware came back in August when they edged Manchester United on penalties to win the Community Shield. Since then, the reigning Premier League champions have suffered early exits in both the UEFA Champions League and FA Cup, while also relinquishing their league crown to Liverpool, who have already been confirmed as champions.

Saturday’s FA Cup final loss to Crystal Palace at Wembley marked another blow in what has been a disappointing campaign by City’s lofty standards. Guardiola, however, remained defiant, pointing to the importance of Champions League qualification and insisting that the season still holds value if that objective is achieved.

“Except for Newcastle, who won the Carabao Cup, Liverpool, and ourselves with the Community Shield, no other teams have secured a trophy,” said Guardiola. “Clubs like Chelsea, United, and Tottenham might still win in Europe, but reaching the Champions League remains the key goal now.”

City are currently sixth in the Premier League table but remain in contention for a top-four finish, thanks to a game in hand.

They require just four points from their remaining two fixtures to secure a Champions League place for next season. Their next match is against Bournemouth on Tuesday, followed by the season’s final round of games on Sunday.

The race for Champions League qualification has intensified, with just one point separating third-placed Newcastle and seventh-placed Nottingham Forest. Guardiola emphasized the importance of focus in the remaining fixtures, stating that City “played a really good final” and must now ensure they seal a top-five finish to salvage their season.