It may be too late to stop Manchester City’s march to the Premier League
title, but Tottenham Hotspur can further delay the title party and
further embolden challengers next season by inflicting a fourth straight
defeat on Pep Guardiola’s men today.
City have suffered their worst week since Guardiola took charge with
three successive defeats for the first time under the Catalan coach.
Liverpool romped into the Champions League semi-finals 5-1 on aggregate
win by winning both legs of their quarter-final, whilst City also blew a
two-goal lead and the chance to win the title against local rivals
Manchester United in losing the Manchester derby 3-2 last weekend.
The champions-elect still boast a 13-point lead at the top of the
Premier League with six games remaining. And they could even be crowned
as early as tomorrow with victory at Wembley allied to defeat for United
at home to West Brom. City thrashed Spurs 4-1 when the sides met
earlier in the season in the midst of a record 18-game winning run that
amassed their commanding lead at the top of the table. However, by
conceding eight times in three games, Guardiola’s men unveiled a
weakness that hadn’t been exposed by their Premier League rivals for the
vast majority of the season.
Liverpool’s bold approach has contrasted to most when faced with the
might of City’s attacking arsenal and Jurgen Klopp has been rewarded
with three wins in four meetings with the runaway Premier League leaders
this season.
Likewise, United scored three times in 16 minutes once forced to attack
by a half-time deficit that could have been far greater had the hosts
taken their chances. City also looked like a side running out of gas as
they let half-time leads slip away twice in the past week after
blistering first-half performances.
“The exceptional thing has been 10 months winning, winning, winning and
losing just one game,” said Guardiola, whose side need two wins to
guarantee themselves the title. “Now we have a mini-league for six games
and we are going to try and close it.”
Elimination at the quarter-finals of the Champions League in particular
soured a hitherto stunning season from City as their wait to conquer
Europe continued despite amassing a squad worth an estimated 853mn euros
(£747mn, $1bn) in transfer fees alone.
However, Guardiola believes delivering the first Premier League title of
his reign was the priority for his second season in charge. “After
Tottenham we have one week long week to Swansea, one long week to West
Ham just to win the two games to win the most important competition. The
Premier League shows how good you are every three days.”
Whilst Spurs were torn apart at the Etihad in December, Mauricio
Pochettino’s men have also shown no fear in their previous meetings with
Guardiola’s City. Spurs inflicted Guardiola’s first defeat in English
football in a thoroughly deserved 2-0 win at White Hart Lane last
season, and can solidify their place in the top four by inflicting more
pain on City.
Pochettino’s men hold a 10-point lead over fifth-placed Chelsea, but
insists his ambition is to succeed City as champions next season. “We
are in the race for top four and that for Tottenham is a massive
achievement to finish in the top four for the third season in a row,”
said Pochettino on Thursday. “That is so important, but the ambition is
to win titles and one day the Premier League or Champions League.”
Fixtures (1400GMT unless stated)
Today: Southampton v Chelsea (1130), Swansea v Everton, Burnley v
Leicester, Crystal Palace v Brighton, Huddersfield v Watford, Liverpool v
Bournemouth (1630), Tottenham v Manchester City (1845)
Tomorrow: Newcastle v Arsenal (1230), Manchester United v West Brom (1500)
On Monday: West Ham v Stoke (1900)
Manchester City have suffered their worst week since Guardiola took charge with three successive defeats for the first time under the Catalan coach. (AFP)