Manchester City hammered Liverpool on Sunderland to close in Arsenal at the top of the Premier League - but Pep Guardiola didn't want the Gunners to serve as motivation
Pep Guardiola saw Man City produce a stellar performance - closing the gap on Arsenal
Pep Guardiola saw Man City produce a stellar performance - closing the gap on Arsenal
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Pep Guardiola told his Manchester City players to ignore Arsenal's draw with Sunderland as he urged them to beat Liverpool for their own belief - not to close the gap at the top.
The side from the Etihad watched on Saturday night as Sunderland scored a stoppage time equaliser at the Stadium of Light to deny Arsenal all three points. It meant they had the chance to close the gap when they played on Sunday - which they duly took.
City were rampant as they tore apart Liverpool, beating the champions 3-0 to further underline their own title credentials. It also allowed them to close the gap on the Gunners, who had been relentless in recent weeks, to just four points.
Guardiola though was adamant that he wanted his City stars not to use the prospect of closing in on Arsenal as motivation - instead he wanted them to lay down a marker against the champions and prove that they are a side to be feared.
He said: "I’m pretty sure when Arsenal was equalised at the end from Sunderland, and it can happen because I’m not surprised, beyond surprised by what Sunderland is doing and the way they are doing it, I think Liverpool and myself are thinking, ‘Oh wow, they dropped points finally and concede two goals.'
"In that moment, in this run it looked like it wouldn’t happen. At the end we have to do it and I said to the players don’t do it today because Arsenal didn’t win, you have to do it to believe in yourselves. We are playing against the champions in England. We have to show them that we are able to be there with them all of this season. Today I think we showed this, especially in the first half."
City endured a notable decline last term, eventually finishing third, and there had been talk of them being in a rebuild under Guardiola. Now they look to be edging back towards their best and their win on Sunday was a statement performance.
Sunderland equalised against Arsenal late on Saturday night
Sunderland equalised against Arsenal late on Saturday night
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The Manchester outfit have been able to chase down Arsenal in their last two successful campaigns. On both occasions the Gunners held the initiative but were overhauled late on by Guardiola's side, who will be eyeing a repeat.
Roy Keane declared on Sky Sports that City were certainly in the hunt, but wrote off Liverpool's chances. He said: "You can't be considering Liverpool for the title. That was a sore defeat. But this reminded me of City of old. They were outstanding. They are back in the mix."
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