Ruben Dias admits “love” for Manchester City’s rivals wanting to ‘take them down’

Manchester City “love” the challenge of their rivals across competitions wanting to ‘take them down’, according to their star centre-back Ruben Dias.

The Portugal international is currently sidelined through a lack of fitness and recovering from a muscular problem aggravated during the 2-1 defeat to Tottenham in the Carabao Cup fourth round earlier this month.

The defeat in North London marked the start of a four-game losing streak for the Premier League champions, further highlighting the importance of senior figures including Ruben Dias, who may return to action after the international break.

While some within the club have seen their heads drop at the form seen across competitions of late, it is the 27-year-old who has issued plenty of fighting talk during a new interview this week, showcasing his priceless leadership attributes within the City dressing room.

Speaking outside the House of Lords in London as part of an anti-bullying campaign, Ruben Dias told reporters that their ongoing losing run across their last four matches is something that is ‘never welcome’ in the club.

“These times are never welcome in a dressing room like ours,” Dias explained. “Even though they’re not welcome, we do know they’re part of it, especially when we’ve won so much.”

“It’s normal that times like this come, mostly because so many people want to take us down,” he continued. “We accept it, we embrace it, that’s part of the challenge. That’s why we love it so much.”

The 27-year-old closed, “If not for this, our wins wouldn’t be as big as they are. It’s the life we live and we love it for it. We just keep on doing what we do best.”

Ruben Dias is one of Manchester City’s most successful stars at present, having won the Premier League title in every single one of his campaigns at the club since joining from SL Benfica in the summer market of 2020.

Forming strong central defensive partnerships alongside the likes of Manuel Akanji and John Stones in particular, Manchester City have won everything available to win in that time, building a remarkable winning culture within the football club.

From the side of Pep Guardiola and his coaching staff, the Catalan tactician will be hoping Dias can make a full return to action for Manchester City as soon as possible, and get the squad back to their winning ways after the November break.