Ruben Dias has pulled no punches about Man City's struggles with their Premier League form by inviting people to doubt them and pointing to their slow starts to previous seasons.

Dias referred back to the 2022/23 season, when City were beaten at Man Utd in the Premier League and went out of the Carabao Cup to relegated Southampton, before going on to complete the first domestic treble since 1999.

"I would say, please doubt us, doubt us, feel welcome to do so," Dias said on international duty with Portugal this week.

"When we did the treble, we even called it the dark January. We had a tough period. But it is what it is.

"What matters is how you bounce back from these moments. That's why our team has won so much because in moments of difficulty, the characters come up and we stay together."