Guardiola lost face! In the 7th round of the Champions League, 5 of the 6 Premier League teams won while only one lost; except for Manchester City, all five teams rank in the top 8.

Manchester City, coached by Guardiola, failed to win any major trophies last season, were surprisingly knocked out by an Asian team in the 2025 Club World Cup, and were heavily beaten by Manchester United in the recent derby. Guardiola and City have hit a significant obstacle. The 7th round of the Champions League further humiliated Guardiola, since all five other Premier League teams besides City won their matches. After seven rounds, these five teams are all ranked within the top eight, meaning they have qualified directly for the next stage. The Premier League now stands as the strongest of the big five leagues, but Manchester City is the most disappointing among the six English teams in the Champions League.

Results of the 7th round of the Champions League for the six Premier League teams:Manchester City lost 1-3 away to Bodø/Glimt, Tottenham won 2-0 at home against Dortmund, Arsenal triumphed 3-1 away at Inter Milan, Liverpool defeated Marseille 3-0 away, Chelsea secured a 1-0 home win over Pafos, and Newcastle beat PSV Eindhoven 3-0 at home..

After seven rounds of the Champions League, the situation for the six Premier League teams is as follows:Arsenal is 1st, Liverpool 4th, Tottenham 5th, Newcastle 7th, Chelsea 8th — five teams are in the top eight (direct qualification zone)., Manchester City ranks 11th, making the Blues the only Premier League team outside the top eight.

Manchester City went from winning four consecutive Premier League titles to becoming an underdog maker. Why has this happened? Guardiola is responsible — mismanaging transfers by selling creative and ball-progressing players like Palmer and Alvarez, then spending heavily on Målmoush but not using him, relying too much on Haaland. However, in 2026, Haaland has been absent or ineffective in all seven games, scoring only one penalty and with a highest rating of just 7. In fact, Haaland has gone eight consecutive matches without a goal from open play. Such a striker who disappears for one or two months at a time shows that Guardiola backed the wrong horse. Yet Guardiola continues to start Haaland every game — a sigh indeed.