Lose to Reds & our title dream’s finished
Pep lays down gauntlet to City stars and warns of mission ‘impossible’ if on-fire Reds railroad them at Etihad
PEP GUARDIOLA last night told his champions their title crunch with Liverpool is win or bust.
Manchester City reduced the Reds’ cushion at the summit to seven points with their first win in three.
And Guardiola believes City’s hopes of regaining their crown will be “over” if Jurgen Klopp’s side make it 10 in Thursday’s top-two tussle at the Etihad.
The Citizens finish the month of December having lost three of their seven Premier League games.
And Guardiola said: “With the position of Liverpool, if we drop points then it is over, it is finished – it would be almost impossible.
“Of course they are going to drop points but not too many.”
Sergio Aguero’s 50th league goal under Guardiola completed the scoring by half-time as City put back-toback defeats to Crystal Palace and Leicester behind them.
The Catalan boss said: “Hopefully my last year will be in two seasons or more – hopefully the team will play better. If not there is no sense.
“Liverpool are seven points in front because they don’t concede many and are in incredible form after four years together with Jurgen.
“I want to win the Premier League but my mind isn’t changed about what we have to do – get better.”
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg robbed Oleksandr Zinchenko to slam home Saints’ leveller after an unmarked David Silva had slotted a breakthrough 10 minutes in.
But Raheem Sterling’s cutback deflected against James Ward-Prowse and in with 45 minutes gone. And Aguero headed home another from Zinchenko’s cross in the third minute of stoppage time.
City skipper Vincent Kompany said: “Every living soul who comes into the stadium on Thursday has to be ready to fight and give it to them.
“And we should be able to pull everything out of the locker for that game.”
A two-footed lunge on a fit-again Fernandinho earned Hojbjerg a straight red five minutes from time, having just returned from a ban.
And Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “The red card was the worst moment of the evening. It hurts us a lot – it’s a silly tackle when the game is gone.”