Manchester City have won just one game of their last 11 in all competitions, signalling their first prolongued run of poor results in the Pep Guardiola era.
The woeful stretch of matches has dropped City to fifth in the Premier League standings and 22nd on the Champions League table. The drop-off has been so abrupt that talk of Guardiola being replaced isn't as absurd a thought as it was even a month ago, but a former member of the Sky Blues still believes in his old club's ability to right the ship.
Speaking to Paddy Power, Bacary Sagna explained why he feels the poor performances were to be expected.
“When a team like Manchester City have been so dominant for the last five years, there is bound to be a time when their performances drop," Sagna, who spent three seasons at the Etihad Stadium, said. "When you lose a few games, the confidence in the players drop and the pressure ramps up.
“At some point, every team who has been successful has a drop, for example Manchester United, so it was bound to happen with City. It’s shocking to see the way they are losing games, but it’s not worrying because they are still the best team in Europe.”
How to watch National League football on DAZN
Football fans worldwide can watch the 2024-25 National League season with a National League TV DAZN subscription.
Every game in the National League, and selected matches in National League North and National League South, is available on DAZN. That's over 600 games to watch live or on demand catch-up, all in one place.
NLTV on DAZN is available on any device, including Smart TV’s, mobile devices, tablets, streaming devices, games consoles, and, for viewers in the UK, your Sky box.