"Gives me motivation" - Manchester City superstar says manager Pep Guardiola is 'hungrier than ever' despite recent form

Manchester City ace Erling Haaland has revealed that their manager Pep Guardiola is 'hungrier than ever' after their recent slump in form.

The Spaniard went through the worst spell of his managerial career when City went seven official games without a victory in all competitions. After ending that run with a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest, the Premier League holders saw another five-game winless run.

During this period, their Carabao Cup hopes were ended, as well as their league title defense, as City currently sit in sixth position. They have only 34 points from 20 games and trail leaders Liverpool by 12 points despite having played a game more.

Such a dramatic loss of form has naturally mounted immense pressure on Guardiola, who led his side to a trophy in each of their last six campaigns. However, he may end up titleless this time around if things continue this way.

Regardless, the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager apparently remains hungry for more glory, as per his ace striker Haaland. The 24-year-old said (via Manchester City's official website):

"In training, we have a hungry manager who is hungrier than ever and that is something that I love and gives me motivation, seeing how hungry and motivated he is even with everything that he has won and done for football for so many years.”

Guardiola took charge of Manchester City in 2016 and has since guided them to 18 titles, including six Premier Leagues and one Champions League. He is already their most successful manager in history.

Manchester City will be in action away to Brentford in the Premier League tonight.

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Manchester City returning to form

With three wins in a row now, it's safe to say that Manchester City are slowly returning to form. They beat Leicester City (2-0) and West Ham United (4-1) in the Premier League, before crushing Salford City 8-0 in the FA Cup third round.

That last one in particular was a statement victory, despite the low status of their opponents. City played with a kind of flair and panache that has been missing from their game for some time now.

Guardiola will be demanding more of the same from his players going forward. With the fixture list set to get more treacherous, they must keep up this momentum in their bid to win trophies this season.