Manchester City were ‘the best team in the Premier League’ during the final months of last season, says Pep Guardiola | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola has insisted that his struggling Manchester City side of 2024/25 were in fact the best team in the Premier League during the final months of the campaign.

The previous season represented unfamiliar adversity for City, who ended the campaign without a major trophy for the first time in eight years, but managed to crucially secure qualification for the following campaign’s UEFA Champions League.

A lengthy winter slump, compounded by the influential absence of Rodri through a serious knee injury, derailed their rhythm and exposed vulnerabilities in midfield that Pep Guardiola’s side had rarely shown during their dominant era.

A damaging run of defeats – including a heavy home loss to Tottenham – left Manchester City chasing sides towards the top of the division from behind, and ultimately finished well adrift of champions Liverpool, guided by their new manager Arne Slot.

Pep Guardiola and Manchester City’s European campaign also faltered earlier than expected, falling to defeat across two-legs to Real Madrid in a play-off clash for a place in the last-16, adding to the sense of a season that never fully settled into its stride.

The lessons of the 2024/25 winter slump

Speaking to reporters during a recent press conference, Guardiola reflected on the 2024/25 season when asked just how difficult the months of December and January were in particular, given Manchester City’s long winless run across competitions.

“Last season was two months and a half really good. The beginning of the season we were top of the league, and the last 10, 12, 13, 14 games we were the best team in the Premier League last season,” the Catalan coach insisted.

“It was two months we were not able to win one single game, we were not able to do it and we didn’t find a way, it was a good lesson, good learning. It was incredible learning for me, how to approach when the situation is bad, what direction I should’ve gone,” he continued.

“But at the same time, when we won the Premier League titles, I always think nothing is eternal. So that doesn’t mean the next season will be like this season. When last season was bad I never thought this season would be like that season.

“Just avoid the mistakes we have done, and game by game… People say and want to anticipate, ‘What will happen if you win seven in a row or you lose these games?’ Nothing. It’s what’s next, and this is only what I’m concerned about.”

Rodri’s return and the 2025/26 mid-season recruitment

The response in 2025/26 has been emphatic, with a refresh that in particular saw the arrival of Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guéhi paying dividends, with City boasting the league’s best defensive record as of March.

A fully fit Rodri has anchored midfield once again albeit coupled by some muscular setbacks during the Autumn of the season, while new arrivals have added dynamism in key areas in addition to mid-season recruitments of Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi.

Man City’s big-three pursuit: Premier League, FA Cup, and Real Madrid

As March unfolds, City are competing on multiple fronts once more, within touching distance of leaders Arsenal in the Premier League title race, through to a domestic cup final, an FA Cup fifth round on the horizon, and another blockbuster European tie against Real Madrid.

For manager Pep Guardiola, the turbulence of last winter now serves as motivation rather than regret for himself personally. The lesson, as he frames it, was not about decline, but about adaptation when faced by difficulties both in terms of results and performances.

Pep Guardiola’s insistence that Manchester City were the ‘best team’ at the tail-end of a trophy-less season isn’t just hyperbole, but points to the tactical shift that has defined the 2025/26 campaign so far.

By integrating Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki into a midfield that struggled without Rodri last winter, the club has effectively built a ‘fail-safe’ system.

This evolution, overseen by the incoming sporting director Hugo Viana, suggests that the 2024/25 season was not the end of an era, but a necessary pivot to ensure Manchester City’s dominance remains ‘eternal’ – contrary to Guardiola’s own humble warnings.