Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says “we will recover our best” after his side slumped to four consecutive defeats, the first time that has happened in his managerial career.

Their 2-1 loss at Brighton came after defeats by Bournemouth in the Premier League, Tottenham in the Carabao Cup and Sporting in the Champions League.

Guardiola said City are not reaching their usual high standard, but are struggling with injuries to the likes of Ruben Dias, John Stones, Kevin de Bruyne and Jack Grealish.

“That’s what it is always about – not being complacent when you win a lot,” said Guardiola.

“We know how difficult it is and how nice it will be when we win again.

“Right now, we are not at our best, it’s obvious. But it’s still November – we’ll recover our best.”

Rodri and Oscar Bobb are other notable absentees for City, with Guardiola handing a debut to 19-year-old central defender Jahmai Simpson-Pusey against Brighton.

Liverpool then took advantage of City’s struggles to move five points clear at the top of the Premier League table by beating Aston Villa.

Guardiola added that his side are not immune to losing, despite their stellar run in recent years which included a 32-match unbeaten streak in the league before the defeat by Bournemouth at the beginning of November.

“I was a football player and many times I lost a lot of games – four, five, six in a row,” he said.

“I never expect different, just because we won in the past or that we are special.

“People can believe that, but it’s not true.”

City had a lean spell in the autumn of 2023 which included one win in six, before recovering to secure the Premier League title again.

After the upcoming international break, City face a difficult run-up to Christmas with fixtures against Tottenham, Liverpool, Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace, Manchester United and Aston Villa.