Race for Premier League crown not over yet, insists Manchester City boss Guardiola

Race for Premier League crown not over yet, insists Manchester City boss Guardiola

Race for Premier League crown not over yet, insists Man City boss Pep Guardiola Photograph: (X/@ManchesterCity)

Story highlights

Pep Guardiola insists Manchester City feel no extra pressure ahead of their "must-win" clash with Crystal Palace. With Arsenal leading by five points, read Pep's update on Rodri, the title race, and his response to the Gunners' late win.

Pep Guardiola said Manchester City do not feel extra pressure even though they realistically need to beat Crystal Palace on Wednesday to keep their Premier League title hopes alive. City, with three games left, is five points behind leaders Arsenal with a game in hand. Failure to win at the Etihad would mean Mikel Arteta's side could clinch their first Premier League title for 22 years against Burnley on Monday. Guardiola was asked at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday how much pressure City were under after recent results, including last week's damaging 3-3 draw at Everton.

"Same one, two days, three days, four days ago, one week, two weeks, same one," he said.

The City boss, chasing a seventh Premier League title in nine seasons, said he had not seen his players to gauge their mood since the dramatic end to Arsenal's match at West Ham on Sunday.

Also read | 'Real possibility something bad will happen': FIFA World Cup 2026 matches in US under cloud of terrorism

The Gunners won 1-0 after relegation-threatened West Ham's last-gasp equaliser was ruled out following a lengthy VAR check.

"I learned from my career as a manager, what you cannot control, forget about it," said Guardiola. "(Focus) and do better what we have not done better this season to fight for the Premier League. We are still fighting and (next it is) Crystal Palace."

Trending Stories

Palace hosts Arsenal on the final day of the Premier League season, just days before they face Spanish side Rayo Vallecano in the Conference League final, but Guardiola said he was not concerned at the prospect they could field a weakened team.

"They are so professional, the teams," he said. "Crystal Palace will play top. We saw Leeds yesterday against Spurs (a 1-1 draw), how even being out of the relegation battle... how they compete."

Guardiola said Rodri and Abdukodir Khusanov were both "better" and that he would decide after training on Tuesday whether either were ready to return to action.

City face Chelsea in the FA Cup final on Saturday, still in the running for a domestic treble after winning the League Cup earlier this season.

Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits for grammar and punctuation. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for the WION audience.

About the Author