Man City well beaten by 'better' Man Utd, concedes Guardiola

Pep Guardiola conceded that Manchester City were outperformed by a spirited Manchester United during a 2-0 loss which added more strain to their Premier League title aspirations on Saturday.

City remain without a victory in four league fixtures this year, positioning them six points behind Arsenal, with the Gunners holding a match to play at Nottingham Forest later that day.

The final score at Old Trafford might have proven far more humiliating for Guardiola's squad, given United's display which many would call their strongest of the campaign under Michael Carrick's debut as head coach.

Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu netted for the Red Devils, while three additional strikes were overturned due to tight offside judgements.

"The superior side prevailed," Guardiola remarked. "We failed to meet the standards needed to secure a win here.

"Across several aspects, we came up short. They outdid us. They showed a vitality that we lacked."

The match's direction might have shifted if Diogo Dalot had received a red card within the initial 10 minutes after his studs connected with Jeremy Doku's knee.

Dalot merely picked up a caution, yet Guardiola emphasised that his team ought not to point to that call as a justification.

"Should it have been a dismissal? Absolutely. Yet it would reflect badly on me to pin the blame on that ruling," Guardiola continued.

"Could it have swayed the result? It's impossible to say. Should the team lean on it as a pretext, we would encounter major difficulties."