Pep Guardiola says ’nobody expected’ Arsenal and Manchester United to go a whole decade without winning the Premier League title, as he warned that it could happen to Manchester City.
The four-time Premier League title winner added that, during the last decade, Arsenal and Manchester United have struggled, but also feels ‘they have something special’, as he told Amazon Prime Sport.
At the start of the season, those at the Etihad were looking to create history and that’s winning three titles in a row, only Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United have achieved that feat.
But it might just be Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal who stops them along the way because they are five points clear at the top of the table after Man City beat Leeds United 3-1 at Elland Road on Wednesday night.
Before the game, Guardiola was asked about the current season and its ‘peculiar’ nature because of the World Cup break and whether that makes it difficult.
“When you see Arsenal and Man United, for example, the last decade, the struggle to be there,” said Guardiola. “They have something special when they are there that we have to fight.
“Always you had the feeling that ‘okay, we have time’. When you fight things like that, then we don’t have time. We have to immediately try to make a result or otherwise, it will be impossible, they have an advantage. There is this margin that sometimes makes the difference, we talk a lot about that.
“It’s not about I doubt these players. How should I? I signed the contract, thanks to them. I am here, thanks to them. I know what they are able to do, so nothing is going to change winning or not winning.
“But we still want to be there because when Man United and Arsenal were there controlling and dominating the Premier League, nobody expected during that time it could be one decade without winning the Premier League. It can happen to us. It’s a warning I have to say that still do it. If we aren’t doing it, then we have to change managers because this club Manchester City right now, we want to the there as much as possible.”
THE NEXT DECADE FOR ARSENAL AND MANCHESTER UNITED
Arsenal will be hoping their nearly two-decade wait of securing title glory will be coming to an end this season because this is the best chance they have had in a very long time.
Not only are they sitting on top of the tree heading into the New Year, but it’s the manner of performances that have been pretty special.
Man United, with Erik ten Hag now in charge, are still a long way away, but once again, the signs have been positive from Old Trafford that something is finally starting to build for the long-term.
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