Pep Guardiola hails ‘important’ win over Leicester but admits Manchester City still ‘need help’ in January

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Manchester City won their first away match in over two months as they secured a 2-0 victory against Premier League strugglers Leicester City on Sunday afternoon. Speaking after the win, City boss Pep Guardiola said that he was relieved to end his side's poor run of form, but admitted the club would look to do business in January if they could find the right players.

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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said that there was "relief" after an "important" win at Leicester City ended their woeful run of form, but he still wants to sign players in January.

Savinho and Erling Haaland were both on the mark as Guardiola’s men secured a 2-0 victory, their first away win in more than two months.

Pressure had been mounting on the Spaniard after an unprecedented struggle for Guardiola at Etihad Stadium after almost a decade in charge.

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A win will help keep them in the hunt for a UEFA Champions League spot at the end of the season, and speaking to Sky Sports, Guardiola hoped that it would kick-start a recovery.

He said: "We needed it. All of us. It was not the ideal performance, but hopefully, the victories will give our mood a better position. It's important to win. It was tight, second half. We didn't have enough energy to sustain 90 minutes, but hopefully in the new year, we can bounce back a bit from a bad moment.

"For the result we have to do something. If you don't perform, the results won't come. Now, in the position we are in, the results are the most important thing to get points and help our minds.

"We have another game at home next and many good things happened today.

"Just relief, that is the word to express how all of us feel. We have done incredible things, and now we struggle to win games, so now it's just relief."

Haaland’s goal was his first in five matches, a huge drought for the Norwegian given his exceptional scoring record since his move from Borussia Dortmund.

Guardiola praised the forward and defended him against recent criticism.

He added: "Sometimes Erling has been judged badly, but it's part of football. He's tired, he's played a lot of minutes. He's become a father for the first time in the last few days, a lot of emotions and an exciting few days for him."

'In some positions we need help' - Guardiola

In recent weeks, a number of stories in the papers have suggested Guardiola and City are looking to spend big in the January transfer window, not just to address the season-long injury to Ballon d’Or winner Rodri, but to strengthen their backline.

Guardiola acknowledged he hoped to add numbers, but did not guarantee he could afford the targets he wanted.

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He said: "I don't know. Kevin [De Bruyne] is back, but we need more in the middle and the back four, we have struggled with full-backs and central defenders.

"In some positions we need help. The squad is good, the problem is we don't have the squad and that makes everything difficult.

"When we're all together we're the team we were, but with important players out for weeks and months it's so difficult. I thought central defenders would be fit all season, but we have struggled - holding midfield and central defenders. We need help. The market is the market.

"It's not easy, it's expensive, so we will see what the club can do."

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