Pep Guardiola has acknowledged that a loss against Liverpool at Anfield next Sunday may effectively end Manchester City's championship defense. If Liverpool wins their match against Southampton on Sunday, they will increase their advantage at the top of the Premier League standings to eight points. A devastating 4-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday has put City's Premier League championship defense in grave danger.
Liverpool, who lead the league with one game remaining, is five points ahead of City in second place with 23 points following the defeat. With Liverpool's victory over Southampton on Sunday, the gap may widen to eight points. The boss thinks it could be difficult for Guardiola's squad to close the 11-point deficit with City if the Reds win at Anfield on Sunday.
After City lost to Bournemouth in the Premier League last Saturday and to Tottenham in the Carabao Cup a few days earlier, Guardiola acknowledged he had no option but to "just handle it." With FIFA's redesigned Club World Cup scheduled in the United States from June to July 2025, the manager emphasized the toll this long season is placing on his team.
Pep Guardiola acknowledged downfall of Manchester City
In contrast to the NBA, Pep Guardiola noted that basketball players get a four-month off-season to recover rather than only a three-week respite. "And 70 games is like the NBA, but the NBA has four-month holidays and we have three weeks because it’s not this season, it comes from the previous season, the last season, the previous season. When that happens, you have injuries for a long time.
Guardiola acknowledged the unique difficulty of Manchester City's current downturn, saying the loss was their worst at home since a 5-1 loss to Arsenal in 2003. "In eight years, we've never faced a situation like this," he explained. "We must now experience it and make it happen by winning the upcoming game. Trusting the basic principles we hold dear is more important than overanalyzing or making radical adjustments.