Julius Okorie
Reigning league champions, Manchester City, have been ruled out of contention for the title this season, following a number of poor outings.
Manager of the side, Pep Guardiola, made the submission after the team settled for a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace at the Selhurst Park on Saturday.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe Citizens had to come from behind twice to level up and avoid another defeat. Despite their spirited efforts to secure maximum points, the ambition hit the rocks with a bang when young defender Rico Lewis received a second yellow card, resulting in his dismissal from the game.
As it stands, Manchester City are currently positioned fourth in the Premier League standings, trailing leader Liverpool by a significant eight points.
Pep insists the team must focus on immediate challenges, that of playing well and achieving results rather than fixating on the prospect of clinching a fifth consecutive Premier League title.
Reflecting on the game against Palace, Guardiola remarked on the team’s determination, stating, “We take a point. We fought incredibly hard and managed to come back twice from setbacks.”
He acknowledged the difficulties the team has faced this season, noting, “It’s a season to suffer. We’ll see what happens in the last few months.”
Guardiola was candid about the challenges in the title race, noting, “We cannot talk about the title race when we have lost four games in a row and have drawn.”
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He said his focus is on injury recovery for key players as they approach the final stretch of the season, adding, “We’ll try to recover players. We’ll see in the last month how everything unfolds.”
Man City have only managed a win in five recent matches pulling a draw in two matches including 3-3 draw against Feyenoord in the UEFA Champions League. Guardiola’s men lost 4-0 to Tottenham and 2-0 to Liverpool respectively and will be hoping to return to winning ways when they face Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, rivals Arsenal and Chelsea were handed opportunity to widen the gap, as both teams could potentially move four points ahead of Guardiola’s side if they secure victories in their respective matches against Fulham and Tottenham on Sunday. It was however Cheslea that seized the opportunity coming from behind to beat Tottenham 4-3.
The story was however different for the Gunners who were held to a 1-1 draw by hard fighting Fulham. The Emirate landlords secured only two point gap.
Guardiola boasts of 18 trophies in the kitty since joining Manchester City in 2016, which includes six premier league titles, one Champions league title, one UEFA Super Cup and one FIFA Club World Cup.
He is considered one of the greatest managers of all time. He is the only manager to win the continental treble twice.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
