Proud Guardiola hails his record-breaking City stars
MANCHESTER City boss Pep Guardiola last night warned the rest of the Premier League that his side will not lose their ruthless streak.
City claimed a record-breaking 15th Premier League win in a row with a 4-0 victory at Swansea. Two goals from David Silva, plus strikes from Kevin De Bruyne and Sergio Aguero saw Guardiola’s men maintain their 11-point advantage at the summit.
When asked if complacency could kick in, the City chief
(right) roared back: “That is not going to happen.
“We are so demanding for our players.
“We can lose, we can drop points but complacency, never happened in the past, the present or the future. Winning 15 games in a row gives us a lot of confidence. If people are happy watching us that is the best gift.”
City secured a 14th straight win at Manchester United last Sunday and their latest victory saw them overtake Arsenal’s record from February to August 2002. “The record means a lot — to get 15 victories in a row is amazing,” Guardiola added. Meanwhile, Romelu Lukaku hit back at his critics with the only goal of the game as Manchester United beat Bournemouth 1-0 in the Premier League. Lukaku, who had an afternoon to forget as United suffered a damaging loss to rivals Manchester City at the weekend, headed home after 25 minutes on a night of heavy rain and sleet at Old Trafford.
Liverpool v West Brom and West Ham v Arsenal both finished scoreless while Tottenham defeated Brighton 2-0.
But it was City’s history boys who grabbed the headlines, and Guardiola added: “Records are there to be broken but at this level it is so competitive — the managers, the players, the analysts — and that means we are strong in the head.
“Normally you can decrease your concentration a little bit, but when you win 15 times in a row it means that every single day you are there.
“Of course I am proud of the record but it does not mean anything if we don’t win the title.
“We spoke about that in the locker room and we said to have a good recovery because in three days we have another game against Tottenham.”
After the controversy of their weekend derby victory over second-placed Manchester United, there was an irony to Guardiola’s post-match press conference at the Liberty Stadium.
United manager Jose Mourinho had complained of the loud music being played in City’s dressing room, leading to reports of ugly scenes in the corridor and a Football Association investigation.
Three days on from that and music could be heard coming
from the adjacent City dressing room as Guardiola spoke to reporters, telling them it was: “No problem. We are so happy, we played really well — especially after the Old Trafford game.
“When Swansea defended deep we found the patience and the right moment when they pressed. We went to the ball like animals, and we understood the patience to attack in the right moment.
“They are hungry still and they want to win.”
Swansea’s defeat was their joint-heaviest of the season and they remain bottom of the Premier League with 12 points.
Head coach Paul Clement said: “We started okay, we were in it, but the first goal is really disappointing. It was almost a carbon copy of what happened against Brighton — easy cross, centre-half has almost ducked out of it and the goalkeeper rooted to his line.
“Our reaction was that we were very passive, showing too much respect, not aggressive enough.
“But games like that aren’t and won’t define our season. It’s other games which will do that, and I include Everton away in that, and absolutely Crystal Palace at home on December 23. That’s really what we’ve got to focus on now.
“At times it was horrible to be on the sideline watching that, seeing my side trying but suffering for long periods.
“For me, City are one of the best sides I’ve ever come across.
“So many good athletes, so many intelligent footballers and it’s really hard to pin them down. We actually had some attempts on their goal so I’m disappointed we didn’t get on the scoresheet but they were a far superior side to us.”
When asked if the club will spend in January, he added: “If we’re going to sustain Premier League status that’s a must.”