“If we don’t win, it’s over” – Pep Guardiola sends blunt Arsenal message to Manchester City squad

Guardiola: We need pressure on us to compete vs Arsenal

On whether the pressure is off Manchester City a little and more on Arsenal, Guardiola said: “We need that pressure to compete good against that team. They have to know that if we don’t win, it’s over. They know it. We talked about that. Every game we knew if we don’t win, we don’t win the Premier League.

“We play with that, but at the end, play that game, you have to do something. What is the pressure? What does it mean if we don’t win? We have to do, we have to move our legs, we have to think about it. What’s happened? We have to use our brain in the moment, and this is what we have to do. Of course there’s pressure.

“It’s the same with the final at Carabao Cup, FA Cup against Southampton in one week’s time. If we don’t win, we are out. Yeah, I know, but we have to do something. What do we have to do?

“This is why we work here, almost every day, to try to let them feel that doing that, how we attack in the final third, when they defend low block, they defend the striker so, so deep, what do you have to do to avoid the transitions, what do you have to do in different aspects that every different rival tells you, this is only I’m concerned.

“I don’t want to be distracted. If we lose, I will shake hands with Mikel (Arteta) and I will pray they lose the next five games to be champion, but I think it’s not going to happen. So, try to win our game on Sunday.”

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Our fans are going to help us, says Guardiola

On the atmosphere at the Etihad Stadium when Arsenal come to town on Sunday, Guardiola added: “It happened this season (a) few times, so of course they’re going to help us because the team – except last season – all the time the team has been there playing good, bad, winning or losing, but always has been there and Sunday, we’ll be there.

“We are looking forward to starting and doing our best. I know the people are looking forward to, it’s a perfect Sunday, 4:30pm against Arsenal – so what else can we ask for?”

Arsenal have never won at the Etihad Stadium with Guardiola as Manchester City manager. “Don’t ask that question. You know what happens, never, never happens, right? Next,” the Catalan said in a defiant refusal of such records.

On whether that poor Arsenal record helps with confidence, the 55-year-old said: “My confidence is how we’re going to train, how the players can believe what I believe, what you have to do. This is the confidence.

“The confidence for the six Premier Leagues that we won in the past, or the titles, the last one, the Carabao (Cup) against them (Arsenal), that does not give you the confidence to win the next game. Because Ederson’s and Kevin (De Bruyne’s) and Gundo (Ilkay Gundogan’s) and Kyle (Walker’s) and Manu (Akanji’s) and a lot, a lot of players that made a lot of things here and are not here anymore.

“Most of them are new and we’ll see. (Rayan) Cherki, for example, (has) never won the Premier League. How is he going to behave in that position? Gigio (Gianluigi Donnarumma) never has been here. And Khusa (Abdukodir Khusanov) has never been here. Nico (O’Reilly) is his first time, first season, like he is really, really, really there.

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“Antoine (Semenyo) arrived a month ago. Marc Guehi arrived weeks ago. There are a lot of players that are going to play, or maybe (think), ‘We can win the first Premier League in my life’. How we will behave, I don’t know.

“My target is, ‘Guys, this is going to happen tomorrow, we’ll try to do this and convince them and say, Yes, let’s go’. That is the way the game must be played. After that, many things you cannot control.”

Guardiola is not expected to make many changes to his starting XI from Chelsea last week, though John Stones could return to the matchday squad after returning to training on Friday – having recovered from a calf issue he sustained on England duty in March.