Pep Guardiola has revealed the fiery team talk he gave his Manchester City stars moments after Arsenal’s shock 2-2 draw at Sunderland, and it clearly hit home.
City responded in ruthless fashion, smashing Liverpool 3-0 at the Etihad to slice Arsenal’s lead at the top of the Premier League down to just four points. The victory, marking Guardiola’s 1,000th game in management, was a statement of intent, and a warning shot to the Gunners.
Arsenal’s unbeaten run was halted after Bryan Brobbey stunned them with a late equaliser at the Stadium of Light, handing City a golden chance to close the gap. But Pep made one thing crystal clear in the dressing room: focus on yourselves, not Arsenal.
“I said to the players don’t do it today because Arsenal didn’t win, you have to do it to believe in yourselves,” Guardiola revealed.
The Catalan boss admitted even he and Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp were surprised to see Arsenal finally drop points.
“I’m pretty sure when Arsenal was equalised at the end from Sunderland… I think Liverpool and myself were thinking ‘oh wow, they dropped points finally and concede two goals.’”
Guardiola’s message was simple; forget Arsenal’s wobble and prove you’re still the kings of England.
“We are playing against the champions in England. We have to show them that we are able to be there with them all of this season. Today I think we showed this, especially in the first half,” he declared.
And show it they did. Haaland, Gonzalez, and Doku tore Liverpool apart in a display dripping with power, precision, and purpose.
Pep couldn’t hide his pride after the final whistle:
“My players gave me a good present with this performance against the champions. We had to perform good and many good things happened; they all performed to the highest level.”
He hailed his team’s all-round brilliance, from Donnarumma’s big saves to the electric duo of Doku and Haaland up front.
“Defensively it was really good. Both the full-backs were outstanding. The midfielders gave us a lot of passes and control. Of course, the threat of Jeremy [Doku] was outstanding alongside Erling [Haaland].”
After a night of celebration and dominance, Guardiola signed off with a rare glimpse of calm:
“I will go home with my kids who came for the game. I will go home for a few days, stay with my family.”
Arsenal may have blinked first, but Pep’s men have roared back. The message to the Premier League is clear: Manchester City are coming.
