Man City has the spirit to weather the storm, says Dias

Goals from Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah gave leader Liverpool a 2-0 win at Anfield which left City 11 points behind Arne Slot’s side in fifth place.

Manuel Akanji and Ruben Dias of Manchester City react. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

Defender Ruben Dias said Manchester City has the ability to recover from its rough patch, which saw the defending champion fall to its fourth consecutive Premier League defeat at Liverpool on Sunday.

Goals from Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah gave Liverpool a 2-0 win at Anfield which left City 11 points behind Arne Slot’s side in fifth place.

City, which lost four league games in a row for the first time since 2008, is winless in its last seven matches in all competitions, a run that includes six defeats and a 3-3 draw at home against Feyenoord in the Champions League.

It has conceded 19 goals during the winless streak, shipping four in matches against Tottenham Hotspur and Sporting. Prior to the slump, it had conceded 11 in 14 games.

“I will not talk about the little details but focus on the bigger picture,” said Dias, who was at fault in the lead up to Liverpool’s second.

“That is, even though it was a difficult moment I did see a lot of character and I did see the fans behind us and that is the only way we are going to go through it.”

City, which has won six of the last seven Premier League titles, has been hit hard by injuries to key players such as Rodri, Mateo Kovacic and John Stones but manager Pep Guardiola has been able to guide the side through injury crises in previous seasons.

“This is just part of our legacy. We have won so much and still we are where we are and this happens,” Dias added. “We have been able to be versatile, adapt and keep on moving forward and thinking one game at a time... That is what we need to get back to.”

(With inupts from Reuters)