Arteta and his men currently sit second in the table after putting together a three-game unbeaten run in the EPL
By Kehinde Okeowo
Arsenal boss, Mikel Arteta has insisted that Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City are still in the English Premier League (EPL) title race despite their current form.
He made this known ahead of his side’s mid-week fixture against Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium.
According to the Spanish tactician,
the league champions’ past successes should be enough of a warning about their ability to bounce back.
Speaking on Tuesday, Arteta said, “It is a team that has the capacity to turn this around and win, win, win and win. So don’t rule them out because you know how much quality and the coach that they have.”
Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola has said he will now target overtaking his club’s closest rival, Arsenal while downplaying his team’s chances of winning the title.
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Man City’s 2-0 defeat to table-toppers Liverpool on Sunday and their winless run since October leave them 11 points adrift of the summit, while Saturday’s win over West Ham took Arsenal two points above the Citizens.
The Gunners are now second in the table after putting together a three-game unbeaten run in the league.
However, while addressing journalists ahead of his team’s fixture against Nottingham Forest, Guardiola said with the gap between his team and Liverpool, his players need to adjust their title goals this season.
According to him, he wants to beat those in the chasing pack first before thinking about loftier goals.
“After the results in the past, to think about a big target [winning Premier League] would be a big mistake,” Guardiola said.
“We need to beat a team close to us and take advantage to be closer to the top four.
“We are not far away from being the second team in the league but it is all about consistency. Liverpool as a team have been magnificent and you just have to fight and win games. Step by step we have to move forward again.” he added.