- Pep Guardiola concedes that Manchester City are not the favorites for the title following their draw with Arsenal.
- City stays third in the Premier League table, trailing behind Arsenal and Liverpool.
- All three sides are separated by just three points, with nine games remaining in the season.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted that his team are not favorites to win this season’s Premier League following Sunday’s 0-0 draw with Arsenal.
The stalemate between the reigning champions and the Gunners allowed Liverpool to move to the top of the standings with only nine games left to play. Guardiola declared that the team leading the way always has the best chance of becoming champions.
“Always, who is first is favourite,” the City boss explained.
“The second favourite is Arsenal and we are third. It’s not in our hands. All we can do is think of Aston Villa [on Wednesday].
“When we were top of the league, we were favourites. It was in our hands. Now it’s not. It’s simple.”
Following last season’s treble, City are aiming for an unprecedented fourth consecutive league title, a feat never achieved in the 136-year history of the Football League in England.
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However, they haven’t led the Premier League since November, having slipped from the top due to four consecutive games without a win, which culminated in a 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa in early December. As City now gear up to host Villa at the Etihad Stadium this week, that December encounter remains their last league defeat, almost exactly four months on.
That being said, the title race remains extremely close, with even in third place – the gap to Liverpool being only three points. City could potentially reclaim the top spot with just one game, provided both Liverpool and Arsenal were to drop points, and there is a significant swing in goal difference.
The draw between City and Arsenal ultimately benefited Liverpool the most, especially after their victory against Brighton & Hove Albion in Sunday’s earlier kick-off. All three sides still have European ambitions to balance with the domestic calendar, with City and Arsenal both in the Champions League quarter-finals this month, and Liverpool at the same stage of the Europa League.
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