Josep Guardiola said he was relieved his Manchester City side ended their miserable recent spell with a comfortable 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
Kevin De Bruyne, back in the starting line-up for the first time in over two months, was the star of the show as the Belgian helped himself to a goal and an assist at the Etihad.
Bernardo Silva and Jeremy Docu were also on the scoresheet on an evening that saw Guardiola’s side look their old self despite showing some defensive frailty.
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And the City boss was clearly delighted to see his side return to winning ways.
“We won, we won. Of course, we needed it,” said Guardiola.
“We won, we had a really good show.”
The result moved City up one place to fourth in the table, although Guardiola was quick to stress that he is taking it one game at a time.
Asked if this was a sign of the return of the old city, Guardiola said: “I don’t know, we have to prove it again.
“It’s just a game, but it’s important to break this thesis.”
“I’m glad I could do 70 minutes”
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Regarding De Bruyne’s performance, Guardiola added: “He (De Bruyne) was excellent, especially in the first half.
“When he’s fit, he’s very important to us. He’s made an incredible impact on our team.”
“I’m trying to manage it a bit,” De Bruyne said of returning to the starting eleven after a long layoff. But when I’m on the field, it’s made us do what I’ve done, but sometimes it’s my downfall.
“In the second half I tried to control it a little more and control it a little more. I’m happy I could do 70 minutes. It’s a big improvement I’ve made lately.”
Meanwhile, Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo was dignified in the defeat but admitted that missing a few good chances could have cost his side in the end.
“We have a lot of lessons to learn,” he said.
“We faced a very good team. We should have done better with the chances we had which could have changed the momentum of the game.
“But overall the team fought, the team competed but City are hard to stop.”
Next up for City is Saturday’s trip to Crystal Palace, while Forest return to Manchester with a visit to Old Trafford.
