Guardiola sees Anfield as major test of City’s ‘Invincibles’ dream

Manager demands first win at Liverpool since 2003 from his unbeaten side, writes Jason Burt

Pep Guardiola has challenged Manchester City to deliver an emphatic message of what can be achieved this season by going to Anfield and beating Liverpool in a fixture that appears to be their most difficult until the end of the Premier League campaign.

City have lost in their past four visits – despite finishing each of those campaigns ahead of Liverpool – and have a record of just five wins in 49 games since 1945, with just one in the last 20 years, back in May 2003. The fixture renews speculation as to whether Guardiola’s side can remain unbeaten and be the new ‘Invincibles’.

The manager is certainly not underplaying the match’s importance, believing it could set his team up for the remainder of a campaign in which they are fighting on all fronts and have the opportunity of winning an unprecedented quadruple of trophies across domestic and European competitions.

“It’s so important a game to realise again, to see again if we are able to do things in this season,” Guardiola said. “Especially on important stages, on Champions League stages, and it’s a good test for us to see ourselves and not just Liverpool – how good they are

– but ourselves, if we are able, when we arrive in Basle [for the Champions League last-16 tie next month] or the FA Cup or the biggest stages of the knockout games how is our behaviour. We did it at Stamford Bridge, we did it at Old Trafford.”

Those wins – especially the victory away to the champions Chelsea in September have been the benchmarks for City and if they depart Liverpool unscathed tomorrow they will have just 15 more fixtures to negotiate to become the first side since Arsenal in 2003-04, and only the third in the history of English football, after Preston North End in the very first season of the Football League in 1888-89, not to lose a league match in a season.

After Anfield, City have to go to Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur – plus a tricky away match at Burnley – while also hosting Manchester United and Chelsea, but it feels like Liverpool is their most challenging date by far.

“If you want to achieve something good or win titles you have to not just win, you have to win on these kind of stages,” Guardiola acknowledged.

“This season at Stamford Bridge we were able to do that but still we have to go to Anfield, to Emirates [against Arsenal] and against Tottenham [at Wembley]. We still have tough teams away, there is still a lot of things to do … for us, it’s a real test, going to Anfield, one

of the most prestigious stadiums and teams in the world, so we’ll try to put on a good performance.”

Guardiola, who was named manager of the month for an unprecedented fourth time in a row yesterday, is well aware of the records. And, with City 15 points clear at the top, it is not just winning, but creating new standards, which is becoming the motivation to drive on the players. That includes ending any talk of an Anfield hoodoo.

“I don’t believe in these kind of things, but of course the last time City won was 15 years ago, so it means a lot in terms of how difficult and complicated it is to play there,” said Guardiola, whose side lost 1-0 at Anfield last season. “But records are always there to be broken.”

The Spaniard is also well aware that Liverpool “are in their best moment”, a 17-game unbeaten run, 13 in the league, and that manager Jurgen Klopp is probably most akin to him in his desire to win – and win in a certain way.

“He’s a guy who tries to play forward, no fear, courage and they play at Anfield, we have to defend, but I’m not expecting a team like his is going to wait to see what happens,” Guardiola said. “I’m pretty sure, and he did it last season, he’s going to try to make his own game and I think it will be a good game. Our target is to do better than last season, a better performance. And big courage. In these kind of games, how is your mentality? OK, tomorrow, the day after, the sun rises again so life goes on but, OK, we will try and do our game and play with personality.”

It is a big test. After five games of this campaign, bookmakers were offering 40-1 against City, who have now not lost in 30 games domestically across all competitions and across two seasons, to remain unbeaten in the Premier League. Now those odds have been cut to just 100-30. If they do not lose at Anfield, they will shorten even further.

‘If you want to achieve something good or win titles, you have to win on these kind of stages’