Premier League
Pep Guardiola confident Man City can withstand fatigue with end of season in sight
Treble-chasing Manchester City face a hectic schedule over the season’s final few weeks, but manager Pep Guardiola is not concerned about his team spreading themselves too thin, saying his players understand the gravity of every game and that the rewards are great.
“It’s just a question of six games for sure, maybe seven to fight for everything – come on,” he said on Friday on his side’s full-throttle, late-season push.
“Every player is ready. Every player is ready to play and give his own contribution.”
City are just a point ahead of Arsenal (81) atop the Premier League with a game in hand, and will look to extend that lead when they face Everton on Sunday at Goodison Park. Arsenal also play on Sunday against visiting Brighton & Hove Albion.
“I think definitely (Arsenal) are going to win their three (remaining) games,” Guardiola added. “I would like them to drop points to be honest but I think they will get nine points.”
City are coming off a tense 1-1 Champions League semi-final draw at Real Madrid on Tuesday, and host the Spanish giants in the second leg on Wednesday at the Etihad Stadium. They will also play in the FA Cup final against rivals Manchester United on June 3.
“We play for all competitions,” Guardiola said. “You have to switch and adapt. There are four games left in the Premier League and it’s really important to be there and keep our destiny in our hands.
“My thought (for now) is just Everton – no more than that. It’s a real, real priority, Goodison Park.”
When asked how his players bounce back from Tuesday’s physically and mentally draining draw, he said winning helps. His team have won 10 successive Premier League games.
“If in the previous game you win, mentally your recovery is quicker,” he said.
“Always I believe the human being has incredible resources to move forward, keep going.
“It’s normal you’re tired, but at the same time, if your desire, your mental (state) is in the right position, the human being can have incredible energy.”
Erling Haaland was named the Football Writers’ Association’s men’s Player of the Year earlier on Friday, and Guardiola had kind words for his goal-scoring machine.
“I think it’s well-deserved, congratulations to him of course,” he said.
The Norway international has scored a record 51 goals in all competitions for City this season, and a Premier League single season record of 35 goals.
Guardiola also said that Haaland is still in “fine” condition despite struggling against Real, but defender Nathan Ake is still a doubt for Sunday’s game.
Everton, meanwhile, have no fresh injury concerns but manager Sean Dyche has confirmed that captain Seamus Coleman has undergone knee surgery and will be out for the remainder of the season.
The Toffees, despite fighting relegation, head into the match on the back of a 5-1 thrashing of Brighton.
The victory also meant they ended their seven-game winless run in the Premier League, but they have not managed to triumph in back-to-back league matches since the beginning of October.
“The message will be simple – just take it on,” Dyche urged his team.
“It’s a big challenge obviously. But it’s about taking it on with the mentality we showed at Brighton.
“All the details have got to be right against Manchester City. You might need them to have a soft one, and your key players play well, all of them things go in the melting pot. Yet, it’s still about us taking the game on.
“I’m sure the Evertonians will back us as they do, it’ll be a really good atmosphere for us to go and play in.”
–Reuters/AFP
Leicester City’s Jeremy Monga, who became the second-youngest Premier League player when he made his senior debut in Monday’s 3-0 loss to Newcastle United, had to wear a blank shirt because it is sponsored by an online cryptocurrency gaming platform.
Britain’s Gambling Act 2005, which underwent a review in 2020, prohibits players under 18 from wearing kits displaying gambling sponsors. Monga, an England U16 international, made his senior debut at 15 years 271 days old.
Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri remains the youngest Premier League player in history, having debuted in the competition when he was 90 days younger than Monga.
Leicester, who suffered an eighth straight loss in the league without scoring a goal, are 19th in the standings, 15 points below the safety zone.
-Reuters
Manchester United and Manchester City players came under fire for their amiable hugs and handshakes after playing out an entirely forgettable 0-0 Premier League derby draw at Old Trafford on Sunday.
In a match between teams limping through disappointing seasons, City failed to leapfrog Chelsea in their bid for Champions League qualification and remained fifth in the table while United languished in 13th place.
Pundits said the friendly post-game scenes were an indication of a lack of passion.
“I think the congratulations and love-in that I’m watching says both teams are happy with a 0-0,” former United captain Gary Neville said on Sky Sports. “The best Man City and Man United teams would be very disappointed with the way they’ve approached the end of that game.
“It looks like it’s Sunday afternoon and they’re going to go for a roast dinner together now.”
Former United midfielder Roy Keane agreed.
“They get interviewed after as if a draw isn’t too bad,” Keane said. “A draw doesn’t get you anywhere fast. This is not enough, this isn’t good enough.”
United manager Ruben Amorim shrugged off the comments with a smile.
“I understand that Gary Neville is critical about everything,” he said. “And then I understand that in the moment we are doing the worst (United) season in history. Manchester City who won everything in the past this season are struggling. So we are not in the best moments to give the best spectacle to every fan.
“And then when we are not fighting for the big things, of course, it’s different. You have to look at the context of the game, and I understand the critical aspect of the players that played in this game in a different way (such as Neville and Keane), because they were fighting every time for the titles, so it’s a different context.”
The mood was not entirely convivial, however, with
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola unhappy about the boorish chants by United fans aimed at his midfielder Phil Foden.
“A lack of class, but it is not United, it is the people,” Guardiola said. “We are so exposed, people who are now on the screen in world football – managers, owners and football players, especially.
“And, honestly, I don’t understand the mind of people involving the name of Phil’s mum in that. So it’s a lack of integrity, a lack of class and they should be ashamed. But it is what it is, so it’s happening everywhere, I would say, not just in UK.”
Guardiola said he was not concerned about Champions League qualification.
“Eight games. Crystal Palace (their next game on Saturday). We go for it,” he said. “I’d prefer to have 10 more points or 12 more points. In the previous season, there were five, six or seven games left, we were already fine, but it’s what it is.”
-Reuters
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Manchester United can claim a league double over Manchester City for the first time in five years and Ruben Amorim needs that victory more than ever in a season where the club are headed for their worst finish in Premier League history.
United have only two wins from their last seven games but form is rarely a factor in the Manchester derby and Amorim can take heart from the fact that his side snatched an unlikely victory the last time the two sides met.
But while City, who corrected their course after plummeting down the table, look primed to qualify for the Champions League and potentially win the FA Cup, United have lost their way to cast a pall of gloom over the home of the 20-times champions.
A 1-0 loss at Nottingham Forest on Tuesday left United 13th in the table after 13 defeats. A loss to Pep Guardiola’s City side would see the Old Trafford club equal their forgettable 2023-24 record of 14 defeats in a Premier League season.
With forwards Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund misfiring, a desperate Amorim threw defender Harry Maguire into the attack in the forlorn hope that a big man could strike against Forest.
The pressure has been mounting on the Portuguese manager who has admitted he does not have time to turn things around.
“We know that this season is going to be like that – win momentum, lose momentum. We continue going into the next match,” Amorim said.
But one big man he will not have to worry about is City striker Erling Haaland. The Norwegian netted twice on his last visit to Old Trafford but an ankle injury will keep him out until the end of the season.
That would come as a huge relief to any defender but United will still be on high alert with City’s January recruit Omar Marmoush on a hot streak having netted in his last three games.
“He has a good sense, good numbers for the short time he’s been with us. Dynamic, good pressing, really pleased for him,” Guardiola said after the Egypt international scored on Wednesday in City’s 2-0 win over Leicester City.
GABRIEL SIDELINED
Arsenal travel to Everton in the early game on Saturday without defender Gabriel, the third of Mikel Arteta’s players to have been sidelined with a season-ending injury.
The Gunners are 12 points behind Liverpool and running out of games to catch Arne Slot’s team, who need 13 points from their last eight games to seal the title.
“With eight games to go, every game is a challenge – starting with Fulham, who are having a very good season as well,” Slot said.
“We are not working on theories about how many points (are needed). We are taking the challenge of Fulham.”
Seventh-placed Aston Villa, who are three points off the top four, host Forest in third, with boss Unai Emery trying to balance domestic ambitions with their Champions League quarter-final against his former club Paris St Germain next week.
At the other end of the table, Tottenham Hotspur host bottom side Southampton, who are trying to avoid finishing the season as the worst team in Premier League history.
With 10 points from 30 games, a draw would bring Saints level with the 2007-08 Derby County side that finished the campaign with a paltry 11 points.
-Reuters
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