Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola insists he is not thinking about winning the Premier League title, as the champions look to reduce Liverpool’s lead at the top.
Last weekend’s win over top four rivals Chelsea at the Etihad lifted Guardiola’s side to third in the Premier League, though the club remain nine points adrift of unbeaten league leaders Liverpool.
High-flying Leicester City also currently sit above Man City in second, and Guardiola admits the title is not on his mind as he focuses solely on the club’s next fixture, a trip to Newcastle United at Saturday lunchtime.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Guardiola said: “I am not thinking about how many games we have to win. I know we cannot lose games. I am not thinking about winning the Premier League now. I never thought, even in the years we won, ‘we have to do this’ to win the Premier League.
“First we have to get past Leicester, then Liverpool. The target when you play this competition every three days, games in different competitions, is the next one.
“Choose the best players for this specific game and try to win.”
City will be without star forward Sergio Aguero for the trip to the North East after he was ruled out with a thigh injury suffered last week, though Bernardo Silva could return after serving a suspension against Chelsea.
Steve Bruce’s Magpies will be looking to bounce back from defeat at Aston Villa last time out, the club currently sitting 14th in the Premier League.
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