MY ACCOUNT
Pep Guardiola expects Manchester City and Liverpool to continue pushing each other for years to come as he compared their rivalry to that of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
City and Liverpool have lifted the Premier League title between them in each of the past four seasons and one of the two will be crowned champions this campaign, having once again proved far too strong for the chasing pack.
Liverpool trailed City by 14 points in January, albeit with two games in hand, and have since bridged the gap to just one point ahead of Sunday’s huge showdown at the Etihad Stadium.
Should the Reds go on and win the title this term, it would mark the greatest comeback in terms of points in the competition’s history, breaking the 1997-98 record of 13 points Arsenal made up to pip Manchester United to top spot.
City and Liverpool have showed remarkable consistency over the past five seasons to continually push each other for not just domestic but also European honours, something Guardiola believes could remain the case long after he has departed the club.
“We’re five years into our rivalry – look at Nadal, Federer and Djokovic and that lasted 20 years,” Guardiola said at Friday’s pre-match news conference.
“To maintain success in football is more difficult than other sports. But when I’m playing golf once I’ve retired, I’ll remember during my time here the biggest rivalry was with Liverpool.
“When you achieve 100 points, 98 points, you need someone to push from behind to be so close. You have to make another step. I think, knowing our club and chairman, we was to continue to grow. I’m sure Liverpool will also try to do it.
“The most credit I can give is consistency through the years. That’s why Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have been on top for so long. We have to try to continue arriving at this stage with the aim of winning titles.”
Guardiola added: “Real Madrid made Barcelona better. Here, [Manchester] United and Chelsea change their managers but at Liverpool, Jurgen has always been here. How consistent both clubs have been to improve what they need. It’s obvious to say we grew up from day one.”
Guardiola has lost more matches in all competitions against Liverpool counterpart Jurgen Klopp than versus any other manager (eight), while the latter has only lost as many matches against Felix Magath (eight) in his managerial career as he has against Guardiola.
Klopp described Guardiola as the best manager in the world in his pre-match news conference earlier on Friday, words of respect in which the Catalan was keen to repay two days out from their latest meeting.
“Jurgen makes world football a better place to live. I try to have a good relationship with all the managers. Jurgen knows me. We also spoke together in Germany. He’s a good guy and I don’t have any problems with him.
“But I didn’t become a manager to be the best. I’m not. Thank you so much for those comments, but I’m not [the best]. I’d like to say I am, but I’m not.”
Sunday’s meeting will be the 50th time in Premier League history that the top two sides have faced off, with the league leaders winning 20 and losing 18, the other 11 finishing all square.
It is the third such match between City and Liverpool, following a goalless draw in October 2018 and a 4-0 win for the Citizens against newly-crowned champions Liverpool in July 2020.
While the match is being billed as one of the biggest in English top-flight history, however, Guardiola is not pleased with the timing of the fixture as it clashes with the final day of The Masters at Augusta National.
“I will sleep like a baby before the game,” Guardiola said when asked if he is feeling nervous. “But I’m upset with the Premier League because they put the game when Tiger Woods is back!
“It will be a massively important three points, of course, but there will be seven more games to play, another 21 points, plus other competitions.”
