Guardiola: "This hasn't happened to us in nine years"

Pep Guardiola has enjoyed tremendous success since taking charge of Manchester City in 2016, but this season has presented him with new challenges. Despite being the reigning Premier League champions, City has struggled to maintain its usual defensive solidity and has fallen short of expectations in several key competitions.

The drop in form has already cost them a Carabao Cup exit in the fourth round against Tottenham, while a string of disappointing results in December severely dented their chances of defending the Premier League title. However, the biggest setback came with their Champions League last-16 exit at the hands of Real Madrid, who knocked them out with a 6-3 aggregate victory.

Now, City's only remaining objectives are the FA Cup and securing a top-four finish in the league. At a press conference, Guardiola was asked how he and his staff plan to utilize the extra time available without European football.

"Yes, this is something new for us. I don’t think it has happened in nine years," Guardiola admitted.

"It means we are not doing well, but now we have a chance to refresh. People might not believe it, but football is not about quantity, it’s about quality."

The Spanish coach emphasized that City will use the break effectively to prepare for upcoming matches.

"We will rest and have four good training sessions to prepare for a very, very important game against Forest. After that, we have another long week before Brighton, then the international break and the FA Cup quarter-finals. We will use this time to focus on details and increase our rhythm. When you play every three or four days, it’s difficult to maintain intensity and fix the things you need to improve."

Manchester City will return to action on Saturday with an away match against Nottingham Forest at City Ground. Following their 3-1 victory over Plymouth, the squad was given a few days off before resuming training on Tuesday.