‘Sometimes a big problem!’ – Pep Guardiola says Arsenal and Manchester United have it easier than Manchester City
/dnl.eurosport.com/sd/img/placeholder/eurosport_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
ByEurosport
Published 05/01/2023 at 12:49 GMT
Even though they are defending champions Manchester City find themselves eight points behind leaders Arsenal. However manager Pep Guardiola has an explanation for why, saying that the added pressure on his team because of their winning is having an impact on the players compared to Arsenal and Manchester United, who don’t have that same level of pressure on them at the moment.
'I like Haaland's behaviour' - Guardiola defends striker after Godfrey battle
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said that he thinks his team has it harder than both Arsenal and Manchester United because of the expectation on his team.
Ahead of their clash with Chelsea, City are currently second in the league, eight points behind leaders Arsenal with a game in hand.
Newcastle United and Manchester United are just a point behind the defending champions although they have two and one games in hand respectively.
Speaking ahead of the Chelsea game Guardiola defended his team and said that things are easier for their rivals because there aren’t the same expectations as on his side, who have won four of the last five titles.
“The advantage of Arsenal and Manchester United right now is nobody has to win the Premier League for 20 points ahead in November like Man City has to – and this is sometimes a big problem,” said the City manager, whose side were held to an unexpected 1-1 draw at home by Everton on Saturday.
“People say, ‘Ah, yes, but you are [City] …’ But with Arsenal winning all their games and you are eight points behind, it can happen [City not winning the title].
“But, at the same time, I see the way we played the last games, and the feeling is good. Maybe we play s*** tomorrow, but the feeling is good.”
Arsenal drew 0-0 against Newcastle to ease the pressure on City a bit but Guardiola said there is no reason to believe Mikel Arteta’s team will falter.
“Why? [Would they falter?] The way they played against Newcastle again impressed me a lot. They dropped two points but they didn’t drop the quality [with which] they played.
“This is my feeling. I don’t know what is going to happen in the future, but when you play [them] the smell of the history of Arsenal has to be there. Their history is bigger than Man City.
“We have to reduce the gap by playing good and winning games. They could do more than 100 points if they keep this average and then we will not catch them. So we have to be almost perfect and hope they drop. They were excellent [against Newcastle].”
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article