Guardiola concedes overhaul 'was too much' as Leverkusen stuns Man City in Champions League

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Pep Guardiola made 10 changes to his team and Manchester City paid the price.

A 2-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League on Tuesday made it back-to-back losses for City and raised questions over Guardiola's decision to leave out so many of his star players — including top scorer Erling Haaland.

"I take absolutely full responsibility," the City manager said. “It was too much. (It was) the first time in my life I've done it and it was too much."

Guardiola acknowledged his mistake at halftime at the Etihad Stadium — making three substitutions after Leverkusen took a 1-0 lead into the break. And by the time he eventually sent for Haaland, the German team had doubled its advantage.

But even the introduction of the Norway striker couldn’t turn the game in City’s direction, making it five losses in all competitions this season and adding pressure to its next game in the Champions League against Real Madrid next month.

Guardiola's sweeping changes to his lineup came after defeat to Newcastle in the Premier League over the weekend. But his bold team selection backfired with City looking disjointed after so many changes.

It was the first time this season Haaland has been left out of the starting lineup for a game in the Premier League or Champions League. He has scored 22 goals for club and country.

“You never know what would happen in the game with other players. Everybody thinks with Erling, Bernie (Bernardo Silva) and the others we should be better, but I don't have the answers,” Guardiola said. “We cannot play Erling all the time for 95 minutes.”

Alejandro Grimaldo fired Leverkusen in front after 23 minutes and Patrik Schick headed in a second in the 54th.

“No matter who they put on the pitch it’s a quality team," Leverkusen coach Kasper Hjulmand said. ”It’s a great team. No matter who played I think we did well."

It was around this stage last season that City was deep into a losing run that ultimately ended its title defense and left it battling to make the playoffs in the Champions League.

This was only its first loss in the Champions League this term, but it could tumble down the standings depending on results Wednesday. It plays at Real Madrid on Dec. 10.

With games every few days, “everybody has to be involved,” Guardiola said.

"But maybe it was too much, seeing the result.”

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Leverkusen's Alex Grimaldo celebrates after scoring the opening goal of the game during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen in Manchester, England, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Leverkusen's Loic Balde hugs Leverkusen's goalkeeper Mark Flekken after the end of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen in Manchester, England, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola walks on the pitch after the end of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen in Manchester, England, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Manchester City's Erling Haaland reacts after he missed a chance to score during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen in Manchester, England, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola sits in the dug out ahead of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen in Manchester, England, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

SYDNEY (AP) — At least 11 people were killed Sunday in a shooting attack during a Jewish holiday celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, police said.

Mass shootings are rare in Australia, where gun ownership has been tightly controlled since a massacre in 1996.

Here is a timeline of some recent shootings.

Gunman Martin Bryant killed 35 people and wounded 23 in a rampage at the Port Arthur tourist precinct in the state of Tasmania.

In the wake of the attack, the federal and state governments agreed to ban semiautomatic and pump-action shotguns and rifles. A gun buyback scheme saw more than 700,000 firearms surrendered.

In the decade before the massacre, there had been 11 mass shootings with at least four dead victims. There were none in the decade that followed.

A farmer shot his wife and three children near Lockhart in New South Wales state before killing himself.

Three people died when police stormed the Lindt Café in Sydney, where an Iranian-born self-styled cleric had taken 18 people hostage. The dead included hostage-taker Man Monis, shot by police, a hostage hit by fragments of a police bullet, and one who was shot by Monis.

A farmer killed six family members before turning a gun on himself in Western Australia state.

A man who was out on parole fatally shot four men and wounded a woman in the northern Australian city of Darwin.

Six people died in a gunbattle at a rural property in Wieambilla, Queensland state. Two police officers were shot and killed by extremist Christian conspiracy theorists; the three shooters and one of their neighbors were shot dead by police.

Gunmen opened fire during a Hanukkah ceremony at Bondi Beach, killing at least 11 in what authorities called a terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community.

A small Christmas tree is at the center of an abandoned holiday picnic at Bondi Beach after a reported shooting in Sydney, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)