Jurgen Klopp has suggested that Manchester City will not “care” about something at this moment in time.
Trent Alexander-Arnold claimed that in his eyes, City look likely to seal the Premier League title now.
However, Liverpool piled on the pressure on Pep Guardiola’s men in the league title now on Sunday with a 3-1 win against Fulham.
Facing Marco Silva’s side at Craven Cottage can prove to be a tricky fixture.
But Timothy Castagne’s equaliser to cancel Trent Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick out did not faze Liverpool, with Ryan Gravenberch and Diogo Jota rounding off a crucial win for them.
With Jurgen Klopp’s side winning just like Arsenal did by defeating Wolves 2-0 on Saturday, both teams now have a one-point advantage on Manchester City, having played an extra game.
Klopp suggests Man City don’t “care” about something now
Meanwhile, Manchester City got over the line against Chelsea with a 1-0 win in the FA Cup semi-final, followed by Manchester United beating Coventry City on penalties after the game ended 3-3 after extra time.
Once again, a Manchester Derby final awaits at Wembley Stadium at the end of the season, after the Sky Blues beat United 3-2 last season.
Pep Guardiola will certainly have to select his line-ups with extra care until the end of the season.
Of course, Guardiola will put out the strongest possible teams to win the league for the time being.
But even so, the £378,846-a-week man will know at the back of his mind that close to a fully-fit squad will be needed for his City side to beat United in the FA Cup final.
The Catalan tactician has managed his squad in similar circumstances before, however.
After Liverpool defeated Fulham, Jurgen Klopp suggested Manchester City do not feel the pressure of the scoreline due to Liverpool’s impending threat in the title race.
“I get ‘scoreboard pressure’ but do you think Man City care? I don’t care. We focus on ourselves. I say everything I think will help, I’m not sure this will help. It’s a really tough game. We face Everton, which is not a normal game. It will be tricky but we will give it a go”, he told BBC Match of The Day.
Manchester City should focus on themselves
As Jurgen Klopp stated, Liverpool focus on themselves and Manchester City should do the same during games, in our view.
It would be counterproductive for the players to either check the Reds or the Gunners’ results, if they are playing simultaneously or worry about whether they won, drew or lost in their league outings.
To take the title fight game by game is always advisable and ultimately, no game is over until the referee blows his whistle.
The Manchester City players will be aware of this reality but in case they lose sight of this mindset, Pep Guardiola should drill it into them if they intend to defend their title crown.