Pep Guardiola can't help himself with brutal Man Utd dig as he plots Ruben Amorim revenge
Sporting Lisbon manager Ruben Amorim is set to take over as Manchester United manager on November 11 but has already claimed one victory over Pep Guardiola's Manchester City
by Tom Victor · The MirrorManchester City manager Pep Guardiola reminded Ruben Amorim wouldn't be able to claim another victory over him in this season's Champions League after taking over at Manchester United.
Amorim's Sporting came from behind to record an eye-catching 4-1 victory over City in the Champions League. Phil Foden put City in front inside five minutes, only for a Viktor Gyokeres hat-trick and a goal from Maxi Araujo to give the Lisbon side victory.
The win for the Portuguese club moves them closer to qualification for the knockout rounds in Europe. They sit second in the league phase of the Champions League, though other teams can leapfrog them with wins on Wednesday, with the top eight teams going straight through to the round of 16.
By the time the next round comes along, though, Amorim will be in the Premier League. He will take over as Manchester United manager on November 11, and Guardiola was quick to remind him the two Manchester clubs have different targets this term.
"We will face them two times in the Premier League and maybe the FA Cup. In the Champions League it is not possible," Guardiola said of Amorim's United following his team's defeat.
The first league meeting between City and United will come on December 14 at the Etihad Stadium. The rivals won't meet at Old Trafford until early April, by which point both will have a better idea of what is on the line in the title race and push for European qualification.
Both of the last two FA Cup finals have been all-Manchester affairs, with one win apiece. As Guardiola notes, though, United's eighth-place finish under Erik ten Hag last season means Amorim can push for Europa League glory but won't get a chance with his new club in this season's Champions League.
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It looked as though City would be continuing their strong start in Europe when Foden broke the deadlock early on. However, it was back to square one for the Premier League champions as Gyokeres equalised before half-time and Araujo put Sporting in front seconds after the restart.
Gyokeres extended Sporting's lead from the penalty spot, and Erling Haaland missed a golden chance to close the gap when is own spot-kick cannoned back off the bar. Another Gyokeres penalty rounded off the scoring, completing a comprehensive victory against a City side which hadn't even conceded a goal in Europe before their trip to the Alvalade.
City midfielder Bernardo Silva said the team was in a "dark place" after a third defeat in the space of a week. Tottenham dumped Guardiola's team out of the Carabao Cup and Bournemouth ended their unbeaten league start before Sporting rounded off a week to forget.
"It's football. It's difficult to find reasons for what is happening to us," the Portuguese said. "I don't remember in seven-and-a-half seasons this team losing three games in a row. It just looks like this team is going the wrong way now."
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