Manchester City defender Ruben Dias has expressed frustration with the playing style of Southampton after both sides played out to a goalless draw on Saturday.
The 27-year old was furious with the Saints application of dark arts as City’s UCL hopes suffered a huge dent.
How it happened
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Manchester City went into the weekend hoping to close the gap on second-placed Arsenal, to boost their chances of a top-five finish at the end of the season.
Despite dominating the entire match, the former league champions were unable to break down a resolute Saints defence, who moved up to 12 points and avoided Derby County’s record for the lowest point tally in Premier League history.
Having conceded 82 goals in their previous league games this season, Southampton prevented Pep Guardiola’s side from finding the back of the net, drawing praise from the Spaniard.
Erling Haaland who made a return from a long injury lay-off, Bernando Silva, Savinho and Omar Marmoush all went close for the visitors who claimed the point to remain third, although they could drop to fourth by the end of the matchweek.
What Dias said
“It’s frustrating. Every point matters right now until the end, and it’s frustrating to play a team like them. They don’t even try to play. They just wasted time the whole game,” Dias told Sky Sports.
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“I don’t even feel like they want to play the game or win the game. They’re just sitting around. But it is what it is. We tried every way. We had chances, but we didn’t score. It is what it is. We didn’t score so we take the draw and we move forward.”
What next for Man City?
The Cityzens are up to 65 points on the standings and with a UCL place not secured, they must win their remaining league games against Bournemouth and Fulham to stand a chance of finishing in the top five.
Before that, Pep Guardiola and his boys head to Wembley for a date with Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final next Saturday, hoping to win a silverware to salvage an underwhelming campaign.
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