Arsenal moved eight points clear of reigning champions Manchester City after beating West Ham United on Monday to extend their lead to 40 points, and city’s manager, Pep Guardiola, has expressed concern over the gap between them.
Guardiola believes that his side cannot afford to lose any further ground on the Premier League leaders, Arsenal, as they prepare to visit Leeds United tonight.
Manchester City have six games in 18 days, and their manager has admitted that there is no room for error as league leaders Arsenal are showing no signs of slowing down.
He said that his side has to be alert and careful tonight when they take on Leeds.
“After our defeat against Brentford and with how strong Arsenal are, as well as the opponents who come from behind, we have to be alert and careful. If the distance is bigger, it will be so difficult to catch them,” he said.
“We have Leeds, and then it’s non-stop.” Our schedule in January is terrible, both in terms of the number of games and the quality of the opponents. So, we have to restart. This is what we did against Liverpool, and hopefully we can continue.”
Manchester City will go to Elland Road tonight after Guardiola’s team was pushed into third place with 32 points by Newcastle United, who are now in second place with 33 points after defeating Leicester City 0-3 on Boxing Day.
Tonight’s fixture will see a reunion between Manchester City talisman Erling Haaland and current Leeds United coach Jesse Marsch, with the pair having worked together at Austrian side RB Salzburg.
