José Mourinho is of the opinion that the five teams above Manchester United in the table are going to have it easier than his own for the rest of the season now that every single one is out of Europe. He might have a point yet, in the short term at least, Manchester City can still go two ways.
Pep Guardiola’s side would not be the first English club to suffer a hangover on the domestic front on the back of a major disappointment in Europe and few English clubs have invested as much as Manchester City in becoming established in the Champions League. That is ultimately why Guardiola is here and stumbling two rounds short of last season’s semi-final mark is not the sort of progress City’s owners were looking for. There is no reason why the club cannot learn lessons, make changes and come back stronger for the experience next season, as Guardiola says they will, though for the moment the focus is on how well the manager and his players handle this unexpected setback.
Related: Manchester City’s Monaco failure should put Pep Guardiola on defensive | Jamie Jackson
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