Liverpool finished as Premier League champions and 13 points ahead of Man City.
Pep Guardiola has vowed that Manchester City will make marked improvements next season - but conceded the gulf between themselves and Liverpool is ‘huge’.
City managed to finish third in the table and have qualified for the 2025-26 Champions League following a 2-1 win at Fulham on the final day. Reaching Europe’s elite club competition appeared unlikely a couple of months ago, while the Etihad Stadium side ended the campaign without silverware, having been beaten by Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final earlier this month.
What’s been said
But Guardiola knows that he will have his work cut out to close the gap on Arne Slot’s champions, having finished 13 points adrift of the Reds. Via BBC Sport, the former Barcelona boss said: "We started really well and, after that, we had the momentum. It was in our hands and we did our job. It has been a tough year but we never gave up. I'm very proud and pleased for the team. Now we will recover and next season we will be better."
"It is like a title [because of] the obstacles. When you continue [a poor run of form], you finish 10th or 11th or 12th or 13th. This is the destiny of all the teams in the Premier League when they are in November, December or January and cannot fight for the Premier League, like we have done for many years. People can say: 'I don't want to fight again, just to qualify for the Europa League.'
"But we continued playing good, we were there and we did it. At the end of it all, we have finished third. We are not miles away from Arsenal but the distance to Liverpool is huge. We have to improve - and hopefully we can do it."
Club World Cup challenge
City are now preparing to participate in the inaugural Club World Cup, which begins in the USA next month. It means that the likes of Erling Haaland, Omar Marmoush and Co. will get a shorter summer break to prepare for the next season.
However, Guardiola says that he is privileged to be competing in the competition, with £90 million in prize money up for grabs for the winners. He added: "It is an honour to be there for what we have done in the past. We are going to prepare to compete well and prepare for next season."
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