Guardiola also said City need Arsenal to have a dip in form to catch up, arguing that despite the draw against the Magpies, they played with intensity
By Kehinde Okeowo
Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola has argued that his team will need Arsenal to drop their current performance level to leapfrog them and win this season’s English Premier League (EPL).
He made the assertion, while addressing the English press ahead of Man City’s clash against Chelsea, saying he loved the way Arsenal played against Newcastle on Wednesday night despite dropping two points.
The Citizens are currently eight points behind league leaders, Arsenal, but they can close the gap to just five points if they beat Graham Potter’s struggling Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night.
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Guardiola during the press conference admitted he watched Mikel Arteta’s side’s 0-0 draw with high-flying Newcastle United and that he is hoping their performance levels drop.
According to him, it will be a herculean task for the EPL champions to leapfrog the Gunners and win the title, if they continue their quality of play.
Guardiola said: “The way [Arsenal] played against Newcastle again impressed me a lot.
‘They dropped two points but they didn’t drop the quality [with which] they played.
“People say, ‘Ah, yes, you are…’ Yes, we are, but with Arsenal winning all their games and you are seven or eight points behind… [Arsenal winning the title] can happen.”
Meanwhile, Guardiola is relishing the physical battle between his striker, Erling Haaland and Chelsea’s center-backs, Kalidou Koulibaly and Thiago Silva, when the two teams meet later today.
He said: “Strikers have to handle tough, tough central defenders.
“It’s necessary. [Against Chelsea] he will have a battle with [Kalidou] Koulibaly and Thiago Silva.
“Always it’s a big challenge and that’s why the Premier League is so special,”
While Man City are hoping to close the gap between them and Arsenal, Chelsea can move from 10th position to 7th on the log table.
