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A body language expert claims there are "20 red flags" in Pep Guardiola's behaviour after Manchester City collapsed against Feyenoord on Tuesday night.
City looked well on course to finally get a win after five straight defeats after a brace from Erling Haaland and Ilkay Gundogan put them 3-0 up in the Champions League clash at the Etihad Stadium.
But the Premier League champions' struggles continued as they blew a 3-0 goal lead, with hosts Feyenoord scoring three times in an incredible 14-minute period to claim a draw.
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Anis Hadj-Moussa pulled one back before Santiago Gimenez and David Hancko struck late on.
City are now 15th in the Champions League with three games left, including trips to Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain. The capitulation left Guardiola scratching his head, with the Catalan seen sporting cuts which he caused himself with his fingernail.
He also said "I want to hurt myself" - a comment which he later clarified on his official X account and stressed that his answer was "in no way intended to make light of the very serious issue of self harm".
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Although Guardiola is known for being extremely animated and it's a key part of why he has been so successful, body language expert Darren Stanton noticed some worries with his behaviour - claiming he displayed a fake smile and used a sarcastic response as a deflection.
"Pep Guardiola’s press conference is even more telling, it shows that he is absolutely at the end of his patience. He is touching his head, shrugging his shoulders and doing hand to mouth gestures," Stanton said speaking to OLBG.
“He flashes a fake smile and keeps talking about what his team already has rather than what needs to change. I think he has no idea how he’s going to turn things around.
“Non-verbally he is saying that they have no issues which means he cannot work out a strategy going forward which will end this run of form.
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“When asked about his cuts he offers a sarcastic response and that is used as a deflection. The fact he has scratched himself is showing extreme anguish and I think it’s because he thinks that he is doing everything right but it hasn’t worked.”
Despite being in the middle of his most difficult period as City boss, Guardiola committed himself to the club by signing a new two-year deal which will take him to a over a decade of service.
But Stanton observed a whole host of emotions and gestures from Guardiola, who he referred to as "a broken man" and predicted that he will not be at City for much longer.
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He added: "Pep Guardiola is a broken man. There are around 20 red flags in his behaviour. There are combinations of anger, frustration and devastation.
“These are normal things to expect from someone in his situation, but he’s had disappointment before and not been as animated as he was against Feyenoord.
“He buries his head in his hands and it’s the opposite of a power stance which would be hands on his hips and feet spread apart.
“He’s almost in a foetal position and trying to curl up in a ball, it’s like he just wants the current situation that he’s found himself in to end. He wants it to be over.
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“He's going through purgatory and I think these are the most extreme gestures that we've seen him make. I really believe he feels like he's not going to be around at Manchester City for long.
“He’s dejected, he’s disappointed, he’s angry, when players are mentioned he turns his face away which suggests that they are going to be in for a rollocking.”
It doesn't get any easier for City as they travel to Anfield to play league leaders Liverpool and will find themselves 11 points behind in the Premier League title race.
Topics: Pep Guardiola, Manchester City
Josh Lawless