Haaland and Marmoush Seal Comeback Against Bournemouth, But Pep Warns Season’s Flaws Remain
Manchester City’s turbulent season took a defiant turn Sunday as they clawed back from a goal down to beat Bournemouth 2-1 in the FA Cup quarter-finals—a result manager Pep Guardiola hopes will reawaken the fighting spirit his team has lacked for months.
The victory, powered by second-half strikes from Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush, carried extra meaning for City, avenging a damaging 2-1 league defeat to the same opponents in November. That loss at the Vitality Stadium had snapped City’s 32-game unbeaten Premier League run and sent them spiraling into their worst slump under Guardiola—four straight league defeats that shattered their hopes of a fifth consecutive title.
Since then, the champions have looked alarmingly vulnerable, winning just one of their next eight league matches and crashing out of the Champions League to Real Madrid last month. Their struggles hit a new low earlier this March with a dismal 1-0 loss at Nottingham Forest—their first defeat to the club in 14 years—leaving them fifth in the table.
“We Forgot Who We Were”
Guardiola delivered a blunt assessment after Sunday’s win, acknowledging his team had lost its identity. “That Bournemouth defeat in November? That’s when we started losing our way,” he admitted. “Too many times since then, we’ve played without passion, without the fire that made us champions. Today, at least, the players remembered what it means to fight.”
The Catalan boss pointed to uncharacteristic defensive lapses and a lack of intensity in big moments, particularly in their Champions League collapse against Madrid. “When you stop running, stop believing, you’re just another team,” he said. “For months, we haven’t had the heart that defined us.”
A Late-Season Lifeline
While the FA Cup now represents City’s last realistic shot at silverware this season, Guardiola stressed that one gritty win doesn’t fix deeper issues. “I’m proud of the reaction today,” he said, “but where was this at Forest? Or against Brentford? We must use this to rebuild—not just for the semifinal, but for everything ahead.”
With a record seventh consecutive FA Cup semifinal secured, the question lingers: Is this the start of City’s revival, or merely a fleeting glimpse of the team they used to be? For Guardiola, the answer hinges on whether his players can finally rediscover what’s been missing all season—their soul.
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