PEP IS CRYSTAL CLEAR ON HIS ONLY PRIORITY
PEP GUARDIOLA doesn’t give a damn about Jurgen Klopp or Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The only manager the Manchester City boss has in his sights today is Roy Hodgson. Crystal Palace’s former England coach Hodgson, 73, has taken four points off Guardiola from his last two visits to The Etihad Stadium.
So when title rivals Liverpool and Manchester United lock horns before City face Palace today, the only thing Guardiola and his team will be focusing on is an eighth successive win.
City have exploded the myth they are a spent force with a 14-game unbeaten run that has propelled them into the top four, the Carabao Cup final and the last 16 of the Champions League.
And Guardiola said: “I don’t think the players are more optimistic or angry or upset because people don’t consider them as contenders this season or think that maybe United and Liverpool are better than us.
“And I don’t care how many games we are able to win in a row or not win in a row. Absolutely zero.
“It is just Crystal Palace. It’s Zaha, it’s Eze, Benteke, it is Roy Hodgson, Milivojevic.
“This is the only thing I’m concerned about since the day after we beat Brighton.
“I think getting confidence comes from how you perform in the last game.
“This is the best thing.you think about the next game by visualising you are in a good moment.
“If you dream about being top of the league or being in a better position, you don’t play good and you are not going to achieve it.”
City were beaten 3-2 at home by Palace when they retained the title two seasons ago.
And almost exactly 12 months ago, a last-minute Fernandinho own goal enabled the Londoners to grab a point after Sergio Aguero’s late double had appeared to give the home side a 2-1 victory.
The memories of those setbacks clearly rankle with Guardiola.
He added: “Crystal Palace is the only result I want. I want to beat them. “The rest? Honestly, I don’t care because in the last two seasons at home to Palace we got only one point.
“Our performances at
Selhurst Park have been much better than at The
Etihad Stadium.
“That’s why the only concern I have is winning against Crystal Palace.”