Never expected a gap between City and United, admits Pep Guardiola

The distance between the two sides has only grown larger and larger since Guardiola’s arrival at the club and it hasn’t changed even with Manchester City struggling this season. Things do look like they might change between the two sides this season with the Cityzens struggling to cope with Liverpool and Manchester United, slowly building a good base.

However, despite a change in Manchester, Guardiola went on to admit that he never expected there to be a gap between the two sides when he first arrived in England. He also praised the way Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has changed his side and admitted that Manchester City are also working on improving themselves in lieu of another season.

“I never expected to have this gap between us and United in these three or four years. I've no doubt about the quality of United and I appreciate the manager [Ole Gunnar Solskjaer]. He represents them in an exceptional way. United are working to improve and get closer to the people above them but Manchester City wants to improve also and the distance is what it is,” Guardiola told the Daily Mail.

The Cityzens have come under immense pressure for their spending over the last few years with it being the main reason as to why they were banned by the UEFA from European competitions. While the club are fighting to overturn that decision, Guardiola went on to admit that all the rumours surrounding his side are simply not true as they do not spend as much as other clubs.

"They say 'That's just Manchester City spending money' but of course it's not true. Just look at the numbers.  When it comes to expensive players we are ranking 23 and 24 but the club has a bad image on that. The important thing is to buy good players who fit in to the way you want to play, and their character. You take all the information you can about the player to reduce the uncertainty of him going to a new club. Maybe one day it will happen [spending £80 million on one player], maybe not," he added.