Leroy Sane Insists 2-0 Defeat to Chelsea Was a 'Wake-Up Call' for Man City
Manchester City winger Leroy Sane has described his side's 2-0 defeat at the hands of Chelsea as a wake-up call for the team.
Coming in to the fixture, City boasted an undefeated record in the Premier League and many had even suggested City could finish the entire campaign without tasting defeat. However, goals from N'Golo Kante and David Luiz ensured Maurizio Sarri's side took all three points and ended any talk of an unbeaten season for the Citizens.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Sane insisted that City must use the defeat as proof that they cannot afford to be wasteful. He said: "It is always kind of annoying and it hurts, to lose especially a big game.
"We were really disappointed because even at the beginning the game looked in control and we had quite a few chances.
"I think everyone could see again that at a high level it is really difficult and hard to play. I think this game was a little bit of a wake-up call, but we are still really hungry, everything is still really tight, and still kind of early.
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"I think sometimes we make some simple mistakes in our game, like simple passes when we are not really awake, or 100 per cent focused on the beginning, we can lose and miss goals.
"Those kind of things can sometimes create some difficult times, create chances for other teams and they get confident. We have to be more focused on our game, to use our chances also at the front, to create more hunger. I think we improved already a lot this season again."
Despite excelling in the Premier League last season, Sane was omitted from Germany's World Cup squad. The 22-year-old found himself out of Pep Guardiola's starting lineup in the early stages of this campaign, but has now played his way back into the team, racking up eight goals and nine assists in 21 appearances.
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Sane added he is keen to continue to improve, saying: "[The World Cup] motivated me much more to say I have to be at the next big tournament. It's a dream for me, and when I saw friends and team-mates playing, I was quite a bit jealous of them, of course, and happy for them too.
"For me, I don't care anymore and don't even think about it anymore, it is done. I think at the start of the season I wasn't playing that much, and we had a good strong team, and it can happen that you're not staying in the starting line-up.
"But I am happy about that, because I think everyone can just improve because you have to work hard to be kind of better than the other ones! I think this is pushing the other people too. This was what was pushing me, and I tried to give my best, to improve and come back stronger than the past season."
