- Guardiola says goal difference can’t distract City from fundamental requirement of winning games
- City beat Arsenal 2-1 on Sunday courtesy of goals from Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki
- Blues can go top of the table with win away at Burnley on Wednesday night
Pep Guardiola has addressed the possibility of the Premier League title being decided by goal difference, insisting the scenario cannot distract his side from the primary objective of winning every remaining game.
Manchester City cut Arsenal’s lead to three points with Sunday’s 2-1 victory at the Etihad Stadium, with Erling Haaland‘s 65th-minute winner proving decisive after Rayan Cherki had opened the scoring and Kai Havertz levelled for the visitors.
City now travel to Burnley on Wednesday in a game that could take them level on points with Arsenal at the top of the Premier League table, setting up a finale of extraordinary drama.
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City won the season series against Arsenal, having beaten them 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium, meaning if goal difference and goals scored are also equal between the pair, the Blues would win the title.
The only previous instance of the Premier League title being decided on goal difference was the famous 2011-12 season, a precedent that gives the ongoing run-in a deeply resonant historical context for City supporters.
Guardiola: Goal difference cannot be a distraction
Speaking ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Turf Moor, Guardiola acknowledged the possibility of goal difference coming into play while making clear it would not change how City approach their remaining fixtures.
“Yes, absolutely,” the 55-year-old said. “It can happen but it cannot be distracted from the fact that you’re going to score a lot of goals. It would be unbalanced, and without balance we’re going to concede a lot of goals. It’s the same question.
“I have the feeling that the opponents we face are going to score a lot of goals, I would say, the margin. The rivals are really, really good defensively when we talk mainly about the next opponent.
“So we have to try to go there, do what you have to do to win the game. It’s the same thing before Arsenal. What is the game plan? What do you have to do to play? Not the consequences. Not what happens if you win or lose?
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“Before Arsenal everybody said, ‘What happens if you lose?’ Nobody asked, ‘What happens if you win?’ So that is the same. What do you have to do in the game plan to beat Burnley?”
The game will dictate if we score goals, admits Guardiola
The Manchester City manager was equally clear that any attempt to engineer a high-scoring performance at the expense of structural balance would be counterproductive, pointing to the quality of Burnley’s defence as the key factor shaping City’s approach on Wednesday.
“The game will dictate if we’re going to score goals or not,” Guardiola added. “As much as we play, more chances we’ll have to play. If you tell me, ‘Listen, if you’re going to play seven strikers you are going to score 20 goals’. Okay, I’m going to play with seven strikers, but that doesn’t work.
“So we have to defend well, all the throw-ins, set pieces, and after attack well, defend well, do all the things we are working on or talking about for the last month.
“So that’s what we have to do. After, maybe, we are able for our game, it’s fluid, it’s nice, in the momentum, we can score lots of goals.”
With City holding the head-to-head advantage and the title race now in the balance on every conceivable tiebreaker, Guardiola’s message to his players is simple: win the football games and everything else will take care of itself.
