• Manager absent from touchline because of suspension
• Coach says team were slow and careless against Lyon
Mikel Arteta said he had no idea whether Pep Guardiola’s touchline absence because of suspension had anything to do with Manchester City unexpectedly losing a fourth Champions League game in a row, though the assistant coach did accept that the side had been slow and occasionally careless.
“You can’t say what would have happened had Pep been around, it’s completely hypothetical,” Arteta said. “The only reality is that we lost the game. We started quite slowly, we lost too many duels and twice in the first half we gave away the ball in dangerous areas and allowed Lyon to score both times.”
Written by Paul Wilson at the Etihad Stadium
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/sep/19/mikel-arteta-guardiola-ban-manchester-city-defeat under the title “Mikel Arteta won’t blame Guardiola’s ban for Manchester City’s defeat”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
