Arsenal Pushed Us To Another Level, Says Guardiola
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said Arsenal pushed his side to another level this season after the Manchester club claimed a historic fourth consecutive Premier League title.
City beat West Ham United 3-1 on the final day to finish two points clear of the Gunners, who beat Everton 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium. It is the second successive campaign in which City have taken top spot ahead of Arsenal.
“It was nice. Of course the first words are for Arsenal – Liverpool as well but especially Arsenal to bring us [up], to push another level,” Guardiola said in an interview. “Before it was Liverpool who pushed us to our limits. Now it’s been [Arsenal] in these last two seasons, especially this one.”
“It’s been an incredible season. We get the message, so I know [Arsenal] will be there for many years. Young manager, big talent and a young squad, a young team – they sent us a message [that] we have to be careful for the next years.”
“Today is the day to celebrate it. If people told me, ‘In the next seven years you are going to win six Premier Leagues,’ I will say, ‘You are insane, it’s not going to happen.’ It happened. The Eighties belonged to Liverpool, with all the managers and Graeme Souness, Ian Rush, all these players.”
“Nineties was Alex Ferguson, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, [Paul] Scholes, Roy Keane. Of course, [Jose] Mourinho with Chelsea and some others. Now it’s our period,” Guardiola added.
Manchester City’s 3-1 victory over West Ham United on Sunday took them to a place not even the great Liverpool side of the 1980s and Manchester United team of the late 1990s and 2000s inhabited.
A fourth successive English league title is unprecedented and the big question is who will stop the City march. They have averaged 89.7 points in their last four title-winning seasons. City have once again proved that when the pressure is really on they are almost unbeatable.
Arsenal and Liverpool both headed City in the standings in the final months of the campaign, but the champions put together a blistering run of 19 wins and four draws since their last league defeat by Aston Villa on December 6th.
