Ilkay Gundogan believes Manchester City's 2-0 Carabao Cup defeat against Southampton could act as a 'wake-up call' ahead of upcoming fixtures against Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.
Having proven to be a somewhat unstoppable force across the previous two Premier League campaigns, City have struggled to find their best form as of late, despite the remarkable goalscoring prowess of Erling Haaland.
They currently sit five points behind table-topping Arsenal in the chase for a hat-trick of top-flight titles.
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Such struggles were evident at St. Mary's too, where Nathan Jones saw his team knock out Pep Guardiola's outfit with relative ease on Wednesday night.
But Gundogan has backed the Citizens to respond from a disappointing set-back as they face consecutive fixtures against top-six opposition, including next week's clash against Tottenham at the Etihad Stadium.
The German midfielder said: “We’ve won games but I feel like something is missing, something’s off. At the minute there’s a special recipe missing - performances, the desire and hunger are not as in recent years.
"Hopefully it [the Southampton loss] was the right wake-up call for us.”
Spurs, too, have endured a mixed spell of form upon returning to action following the FIFA World Cup-enforced break.
Last time out, the Lilywhites triumphed over League One Portsmouth 1-0 in the FA Cup, though such a display was deemed underwhelming. Antonio Conte had overseen a first Premier League win since November before that, after an impressive second-half performance saw them defeat Crystal Palace 4-0 at Selhurst Park.
However, the home defeat to Aston Villa and a comeback draw at Brentford saw concerns raised by supporters, with Spurs currently sitting outside the Champions League places.
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