Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has expressed surprise at how Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola handled his team in their 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Arsenal.
Manchester City were outclassed by Arsenal in their Premier League clash on Sunday.
Neville expressed shock at how poorly Guardiola has handled injuries to major players and what he perceived as a lack of energy.
Martin Ødegaard opened the scoring for Arsenal in the second minute, and Thomas Partey made it 2-1 shortly after Erling Haaland had equalized for the visitors.
Myles Lewis-Skelly scored the Gunners' third, while Kai Havertz and Ethan Nwaneri wrapped up the rout with late goals.
Speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast, the former England international said:
"I think the minute you play against Manchester City now and you raise the level of intensity, they really struggle. They really, really struggle.
"They haven't got the energy anymore as a team. In transition, they're poor. I have to say, I thought Pep Guardiola would have dealt a lot better and handled a lot better the loss of Rodri. I really did."
"If this was another manager, you'd be sat there saying, 'Are you sure Bernardo Silva and Mateo Kovačić will work against Arsenal, who've got Martin Ødegaard, Declan Rice, and Thomas Partey? They're energetic and have real quality and power. I think to actually give them a chance, maybe you pack that midfield with three or four players in there, and maybe it's numbers-then add to that.'"
Manchester City remain in the top four despite the heavy defeat. They are fourth in the table, but 15 points behind Liverpool, who have a game in hand.
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