- Man City play Everton tonight
- Victory needed to keep up with Arsenal
- Pep Guardiola more at ease than last season
All the pressure right now is on Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola is feeling much calmer than he was at this point in the previous campaign.
The day has arrived for Manchester City to get back in action, after almost two weeks without a match in the Premier League.
City are in fine form, having recently defeated Chelsea, Arsenal and Burnley respectively, which previously saw them move into first place in the league table.
However, the Gunners have won two games since then, meaning there is now a six-point gap between the teams.
Pep Guardiola is more relaxed than this time last season
Despite Man City needing a win at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, Pep Guardiola is feeling calmer now than he was at this stage a year ago.
This is because his team have already secured their place in next season’s Champions League, which was not the case last season.
“The process between games, I’m more calm than last season,” Guardiola said in his pre-match press conference.
“Last season was 24 hours thinking about what happens if we won’t qualify for the Champions League. I felt that a lot.
“I can imagine when a team is not relegated, this kind of stuff, it changes clubs, the players, financially you can’t do investment for good players. At the end, it’s the reason why the team has success, because they have good players.”
Speaking about City’s success this season, the manager added: “But this season, we won the Carabao Cup, Final of the FA Cup again, still fighting against this Arsenal. So what can I say? It’s really good.
“I’d love to go through in the Champions League, but the level is higher and it’ll be good learnings for me for the next season.”
Man City’s season is already a bigger success than last time
The 2024/25 campaign was truly awful for Man City. In fact, it was only Guardiola’s second at the club without a trophy.
This season is a different story, with one piece of silverware already added to the cabinet after City’s Carabao Cup final win over Arsenal.
Additionally, another victory against Chelsea would see the Sky Blues lift a second trophy, adding to their earlier success.
Therefore, even if Man City do not win the Premier League, this will still go down as a season with some successes, which is helping put Guardiola’s mind at rest.
There is still time for Arsenal to drop points
If City fail to defeat Everton, Mikel Arteta’s team will become strong favourites to win the title later this month.
However, they play West Ham next – a team who are absolutely desperate for three points which could remove them from the relegation zone.
Burnley at home ought to be a straightforward victory, but ending with a trip to Selhurst Park will not be easy.
This is a Premier League title race where either team could slip up. City just need to make sure they keep on winning, rather than worrying about what Arsenal are doing.
