Manchester City were involved in a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
It was another game that showed the Premier League champions are struggling at the moment.
In the last nine games in all competitions, Pep Guardiola’s men have only managed to win one game.
Their win against Nottingham Forest last week at the Etihad Stadium showed signs of improvement for the Premier League giants, but the draw against Palace brought them back to reality and showed once again that they need improvement in all areas of the pitch.
Erling Haaland is back in goalscoring form, but the night’s other goalscorer, Rico Lewis, was sent off after scoring the second goal for Guardiola’s side.
Guardiola was frustrated after the game and confronted the referee about two of the decisions he made.
The Man City manager was unhappy with the decision to send Lewis off, as well as with referee Rob Jones blowing the final whistle as his side attacked the Crystal Palace goal.
BBC reporter Chris Wise informed: “Pep Guardiola finished wagging his finger at referee Rob Jones at the end of the game.
“I guess his irritation is two-fold: Jeremy Doku was breaking away when the full-time whistle blew, but he’ll also have something to say about Rico Lewis’ second yellow card, which looked a bit harsh.
“It came at a time when Manchester City also had Palace pegged.”
Guardiola can’t blame the referee for another poor Man City performance
It was a game that could have ended in defeat for his side as Palace missed several clear chances in the first half.
Man City need to improve their midfield and defensive positions if they are to challenge Liverpool and Arsenal for the Premier League title.
The right side of their defense where Kyle Walker plays is a position they should worry about. The English defender is weak defensively and teams have tried to expose that area of the pitch to City.
Josko Gvardiol’s performance is another concern for Guardiola as the left-back is out of form and struggling to perform to his usual high standards.
Liverpool now hold an eight-point lead over City with a game in hand, putting Arne Slot’s side in the driver’s seat in the title race.
