Manchester City appeared to be coasting to victory against Crystal Palace on Saturday, but the Premier League champion’s afternoon unraveled with fewer than 15 minutes of regular time remaining.

After City had conceded a reckless penalty, Palace equalized and then scored again deep into injury time.

City was held to a 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, dropping another two points in the Premier League title race as a result of the two late goals.

The club is now fourth in the Premier League table, three points behind league leader Liverpool, which has a game in hand.

“It’s not bad luck, it’s deserved,” Guardiola remarked later, according to Reuters. “We lose two points.” You deserve this penalty if you give it away. You can see the chances we generated and conceded – it’s very similar to the rest of the season – but we can’t finish the games out. That’s how I feel.”

City had a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Jack Grealish and Rico Lewis before Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta hauled them back within striking distance.

Then, in the 94th minute, Phil Foden’s poor challenge on Mateta resulted in a penalty, which Michael Olise duly scored to secure a 2-2 tie.

Conceding so late in the game has become a typical trend for City this season, with Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool, and Chelsea all scoring late goals to level, and Arsenal winning.

This pattern stands in stark contrast to City’s all-conquering, merciless previous self, which won the treble last year – only the second English team to do so – and five of the last six league crowns.

However, after reaching the summit of European football and eventually winning the elusive Champions League trophy, there is a sense that exhaustion may have contributed to a more vulnerable team this year.

After losing to Palace on Saturday, City has now won only one of its previous six league games.

“The team was really good, but in the end, when you give Crystal Palace a penalty, you don’t deserve it,” Guardiola continued, according to the club’s website. “It’s similar to the Chelsea penalty in that we don’t deserve to win.”

“Look at the games against Spurs, Liverpool, and today; we were excellent, but we couldn’t win.” When this happens, it’s because we’re not consistent enough in closing games, among other things.”

Nonetheless, there is still more than half the season left, and City has always been capable of stepping up a notch after Christmas and dismantling any opposition.

Erling Haaland, the club’s all-time leading scorer, has yet to return after missing the last two games due to a foot injury.

However, with four teams at the top of the table – Liverpool, Arsenal, Aston Villa, and City – all within three points of each other, City’s title defense appears to be fraying.