Pep Guardiola's confidence ensures Manchester City will break their losing streak

City faced a string of disappointments, starting with their elimination from the League Cup in a loss to Tottenham Hotspur. This was followed by a shocking 2-1 league defeat at the hands of Bournemouth. To make matters worse, they were handed a humiliating 4-1 defeat in the Champions League by Portuguese side Sporting, who were led by future Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim.

Yet Guardiola was optimistic City, who trail leaders Liverpool in the Premier League table by two points, can right the ship, saying they were solid in large stretches of their three losses.

ALSO READ: ‘I knew the quality of our team’ – Arne Slot unsurprised by Liverpool’s superb start to season

"There always is a first time (to lose four straight), hopefully it is not the case," Guardiola told reporters. "Twenty minutes against Fulham we were not good, against Bournemouth we were not good, but the rest of the games we were good. We are good. We will see what happens."

While Guardiola has never lost four straight as a manager, City did go six games in a row without a win in his first season in charge in 2016-17.

The manager will not have Jack Grealish back from injury for Saturday, he said, despite interim England manager Lee Carsley naming Grealish in his squad for the upcoming international break.

John Stones and Ruben Dias, who were also absent on Tuesday, are not expected to return for their clash with Brighton.

"No good news," the manager said. "The same, I think, as Lisbon."

While City midfielder Bernardo Silva said the team are "in a dark place" after their humbling loss in Portugal, Guardiola said his players are not in any need of extra reassurance.

"I don't think so. Of course, we are not used to losing three games in three different competitions but it is football and it has happened," the Catalan said. "We know the reason why we struggle but we are looking forward to this game and after the international break, and after that a few players will be back and recovered. All the little problems we have with players will be solved. I hope."

With his managerial contract set to expire at the end of this season, Guardiola was asked whether he had a trip to Abu Dhabi to meet with City's owners planned for the international break.

"No," was all he would say on the subject.

Guardiola signed his last two contract extensions during November international breaks.

Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to web's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for web audience.