The Treble winners have not won in four league matches and are six points behind leaders Arsenal in the Premier League.
After their 1-0 loss at Aston Villa on Wednesday night manager Pep Guardiola admitted his side “are struggling”.
Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown believes the champions are “in a mini-crisis and look vulnerable.
Leon Bailey’s 74th-minute deflected shot gave Villa a deserved victory—one which meant City dropped to fourth in the table, behind Villa, Liverpool and Arsenal.
The stats do not look good for a Manchester City side hunting a record-breaking fourth consecutive Premier League title.
City have gone four Premier League games without a win for the first time since April 2017, having drawn with Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham before their loss Aston Villa.
City conceded 17 goals across their first 15 Premier League matches for the first time since 2009-10 when they finished fifth.
It is worth mentioning though that in their 2018-19 title-winning season under Guardiola, City were 10 points off top spot after 19 games and still went on to win the Premier League with 98 points. Do not count them out just yet.
After the disappointing defeat, Guardiola admitted “the better team won” and he “has to find a solution” to reverse City’s woes.
“We struggled, especially in the first half and the second was completely different,” the City manager told Amazon Prime. “In the final third, the quality of the pass and the movement, we didn’t find it all game.
“We know what’s our level and as a manager we have to find a way to win games. We’re struggling a bit. I’m here to help them.”
City’s four defeats this season have come when influential midfielder Rodri has been out of the starting XI. The Spaniard missed the match with Villa through a one-match suspension.
With Rodri in the team, City are unbeaten in their past 43 matches and Guardiola added he has “to find a way to win without him”.
