Guardiola expects more twist in Premier League title race

By
Pep Guardiola has played down the suggestion that Manchester City are now Premier League title favourites despite two stumbles in as many games by leaders Liverpool that cut the gap at the top to three points.



Pep Guardiola
Jurgen Klopp’s side could have gone seven points clear by beating Leicester last week, but only drew 1-1 and were held by the same scoreline at West Ham on Monday.



Those two draws have allowed City back into the race, and having beaten Arsenal 3-1 on Sunday, the champions will go top on goal difference if they win at Everton on Wednesday.

However, after a topsy-turvy week that began with City falling to a shock 2-1 defeat at relegation-threatened Newcastle last Tuesday, Guardiola is sure there will be plenty more twists before the end of the season.

“Three or four days ago, we were already done, and the champions were Liverpool. Now we are the favourites and maybe soon we can be leading. We try to be calm.

“There will be surprises and it will be tough for teams to win every game. The contenders and the non-contenders have the ability and skills to create problems.

What I’m more concerned about is that we never forget who we are as a team. Doing what we have to do, we are a strong team. That’s what I want to watch every single day.
“After that, we see about the results, the table, the favourites and this kind of thing.”
– ‘Typical’ English title race –
City won the title last season with a Premier League record total of 100 points last season, but Guardiola sees that kind of dominance as an anomaly in English football.
“I would say it’s typical in England, this kind of situation,” he said of this season’s close fight.
“What’s not common is what happened last season, where we win 18 games in a row, with 100 points and a lot of distance (to the team in second place).
“Normal is what happens now, where every game is tough –- and you can win or lose every single game, because every team is either involved in the title, or Europe, or in trying to stay in the Premier League.”
Guardiola also suggested that it would be foolish to rule out Tottenham, Chelsea or even fifth-placed Manchester United in the title race.
Spurs are two points behind City, in third, and five points off the lead, with Chelsea 12 points from top spot and United 14 points adrift.
“That’s a question for you,” Guardiola said. “I never said Tottenham are not there. Chelsea, I never said they are not there. United, if they carry on making this run every single week, they will be there.
“Now people see the table, and see the first two or three, and don’t look further than that.
“Chelsea can win a few games in a row and be a contender. There are 39 points to play for. Everyone is ready to take points.”
Everton boss Marco Silva is under pressure to spring a surprise on Wednesday after winning just three of their last 12 league matches, and suffering an FA Cup fourth-round exit at Championship side Millwall.
But Guardiola believes the Toffees must be patient and give the Portuguese coach time.
“People don’t know how difficult it is to create teams, it takes time,” Guardiola said. “If they believe in him, they have to move forward with him. It’s difficult to create and move forward. It takes time, so it depends on them.”

Source:https://samueljackson12.blogspot.com/2019/02/guardiola-expects-more-twist-in-premier.html

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Prostitution; Nigerian Women At Growing Risk From Human Traffickers In Germany.

By
Image
According to InfoMigrants, Nigerian women are at growing risk from traffickers in Germany who exploit and engage them in prostitution. Read the full report below by InfoMigrants. The new prostitute protection law in Germany was meant to identify victims of human trafficking – most of them migrant women. More than 18 months after the law came into effect, thousands continue to be targeted for exploitation, and the risk for Nigerian women seems to be increasing. There are campervans parked by the roadside. Some have hearts painted on them, one says “girls, girls” in red letters. It’s an easy matter for someone to stop for a quick transaction in one of these Love-Mobiles – sex with one of the “girls” in exchange for the going rate. Prostitution is mainly legal in Germany, as are these mobile brothels. But many of the women in the business – including those working from the Love-Mobiles – are victims of illegal human trafficking. Most of the women are from Eastern Europe or Nige...
Read more

FULL TEXT: A sacrifice for our new political order – Ezekwesili

By
Image
“When the ACPN leadership approached me in a series of visits to appeal that I run for office on their platform, the party appeared to be a good fit. It was founded by some disgruntled PDP members some years ago, but when its prime founder decided to return to the PDP, a core of its membership refused to move back with him. I was told that they stayed back because of their opposition to the ways of the PDP. Considering my vocal disapproval of the PDP and the APC, I admired the ACPN’s decision to stand firm and refusal to be co-opted.” It has been an interesting one week since I made the tough but necessary decision to suspend my campaign for the presidency. I have been truly overwhelmed by the reactions to my announcement from Nigerians. Even in airports outside the country as I travelled last week, Nigerians walked up to me with questions, concerns, encouragement, and motivation. I also saw disappointment by some who had poured their hearts and hopes into actualising our mission ...
Read more

Update On Slay Queen Who Was Stripped Naked And Tortured Over Missing Phone.

By
Image
The League of Patriotic Lawyers has given Edo State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olusegun Odumosu, 24 hours to unravel those behind the torture and insertion of pepper into a girl’s private part in Benin City over alleged stealing of a mobile phone.  Chairman of the platform and former Student Union President of the University of Benin, Mr. Abubakar Yesufu, who said this in a statement yesterday, also urged the state Director, Department of State Services, DSS, to be involved in the investigation. A video of the incident, seen by Vanguard yesterday, showed the girl being stripped naked by a group of people, who inserted pepper into her private parts for allegedly stealing a phone. The unidentified girl was heard crying and saying she didn’t steal any phone, while she was being humiliated by the crowd. Yesufu said: “The League of Patriotic Lawyers has given the Edo State Commissioner of Police 24 hours to arrest and commence prosecution of all the street urchins behind thi...
Read more