January 12, (THEWILL) – The decision to select an underpowered starting lineup by Pep Guardiola backfired as Manchester City was defeated 2-0 by Southampton in Wednesday’s EFL Cup quarter-final round.
With Saturday’s league match against Manchester United in mind, City substituted Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, and Ederson at St. Mary’s.
That turned out to be expensive as Sekou Mara and Moussa Djenepo gave the bottom-placed team in the English Premier League a two-goal lead at halftime by capitalising on some bad positioning by Stefan Ortega.
De Bruyne and Erling Haaland’s additions gave City a minor increase in attacking prowess, but they were unable to recover from the disadvantage of being two goals behind and they, therefore, suffered a shocking elimination.
Southampton will shortly learn who they will play in the semifinals. On Saturday, the Saints face fellow strugglers Everton in English Premier League action, while City will be looking to bounce back in the Manchester derby against city rival Manchester United.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
