March 13, (THEWILL) — Pep Guardiola claimed the English Premier League Manager of the Month award for February 2026, completing a City double alongside winger, Antoine Semenyo. The Spanish tactician’s recognition was built on four victories in the month, a tally no other club matched, which yielded five more points than league leaders, Arsenal, during the same period.
The voting window worked in City’s favour. The 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest, which Bernardo Silva subsequently warned had cost the club dearly, fell in early March and, therefore, lay outside the consideration period. Similarly, the 3-0 defeat to Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League was not factored into the judging process, though its psychological toll on the squad was plain to see.
Silva offered a candid picture of the mood inside the dressing room following the Bernabéu defeat. “Really bad, really dark,” the Portuguese midfielder said of the atmosphere, with reports suggesting players were too disconsolate to shower and boarded the team coach back to the hotel far later than planned. The journey was said to have passed in silence.
Guardiola’s fellow nominees for the managerial honour were Brentford’s Keith Andrews, Manchester United’s Michael Carrick, and Liverpool’s Arne Slot. All four sides enjoyed productive Februarys, though City’s four-win return ultimately proved the decisive factor in the voting.
Silva’s warning that his side “can lose a lot” in the weeks ahead underlines the fragility of City’s position despite the individual recognition. Guardiola and Semenyo’s awards offer a moment of acknowledgement, yet the club’s attention will firmly shift to collective targets before the season reaches its conclusion.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
