Title race is over but second is up for grabs, confesses Pep Guardiola

Title race is over but second is up for grabs, confesses Pep Guardiola

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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola admitted that the title race is over and the gap between Liverpool and City is too large to cover. The reigning champions surrendered a 2-0 lead and lost 3-2 Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux as the gap between the Reds and City stretched to 14 points.

Manchester City’s game against Wolves had a lot of drama with VAR penalties being retaken, a red card and to top it off a sensational comeback by the home side to win the game. City travelled to Molineux with an aim to take advantage of Leicester’s defeat to Liverpool and secure the second spot. However, things didn’t go as per plan as Ederson was shown a red card in the 12th minute of the game reducing the England champions to 10 men.

The 10 men City took lead via Raheem Sterling after a penalty. Against all odds, the Citizens were able to take a 2-0 lead just after half time but Nuno Espirito Santo’s men completed a startling comeback as they beat Manchester City 3-2. It put the reigning champions fourteen points behind Liverpool and Pep Guardiola went on to admit that Liverpool are the favourites to win now and the title race is over for his team.

“The advantage is too big, yes. It's unrealistic to think about Liverpool, we think about Leicester. We have the chance to recover second place. I know the quality of my team but that's the situation,” said Guardiola to BBC.   

There are suggestions that the 4 time Premier League champs will now prioritise other cup competitions and the UEFA Champions League over the league. They face League Two side Port Vale in the third round of the FA Cup on 4 January, before taking on rivals Manchester United in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final on 7 January.

Pep’s boys will take on 13 time Champions League winners Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League round of 16. Guardiola told that they won’t do anything as such as if they prioritise the cups over the league there’s a risk that they might miss out on a top-four spot all-together.

“We cannot prioritise or next season we'll not be in Europe. We come back in less than 40 hours to play another game [against Sheffield United]. We'll see how [the players] feel. That's what we are going to do,” concluded the ex Bayern Munich coach.

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