Embattled Guardiola will give up on the title if Man City lose at Liverpool
After watching his side beaten by Spurs, Pep Guardiola said hopes of a fifth successive Premier League title will be over if Manchester City lose at Liverpool next week after his “fragile” side suffered a fifth defeat in a row.
City were comprehensively beaten by Tottenham Hotspur at the Etihad Stadium, with James Maddison scoring twice before Pedro Porro and Brennan Johnson added more goals.
City became the first reigning champions to lose five games in a row since Chelsea in 1956 and Guardiola’s team could fall 11 points behind Liverpool if they are beaten at Anfield next Sunday.
In the event of a defeat, Guardiola insisted the main objective of the season would be securing a Champions League place, rather than looking at the title.
“When you lose 4-0 you can only congratulate Tottenham. We are a bit fragile right now, we struggled to score goals in this game and we are playing a bit in our thoughts with negativity. We lost three games in a row in the Premier League but we have to break these results,” the City manager said.
“We are not used to doing this situation but life is like this. Sometimes it happens and we have to accept it. It is what it is now and we will stand up and do it.”
When asked whether an 11-point deficit would be too much to make up to win the title, he added: “Yes. In terms of Liverpool winning, winning, winning.
“We have to think about the next game rather than the end of the season. We won it in the past because we deserved it, now we have to step-by-step get better and first of [all] qualification for the Champions League.”
City had John Stones come off at half-time in discomfort, having returned to the team after missing international duty. Kyle Walker, who captained the team, said the players can return to winning ways.
“It’s hard to stand here and speak about it when I haven’t properly digested it yet. I’ve stood here when we won titles so I’ll stand here for defeats too,” he said.
“Hopefully the mojo comes back and we see the normal City from the past eight seasons. Your powers don’t just go. We know our qualities and weaknesses. You get a win, you get your confidence and we’re back to how we used to feel.”
“I wouldn’t say we’ve lost confidence together. I’ve spent eight years with this group. You lose confidence as a team but we have to remember what we’ve achieved together. What we’ve achieved in the past means nothing, it’s history. We have one team above us doing well. We’ll keep fighting to the end as we always do.”
Spurs’ win came after questions were asked of manager Ange Postecoglou following the defeat by Ipswich Town before the international break.