Pep Guardiola has conceded that Manchester City’s pursuit of the Premier League title has become “complicated” following their 1-1 stalemate with struggling West Ham at the London Stadium.
The result leaves the defending champions trailing Arsenal by nine points, dealing a significant blow to their hopes of reclaiming the crown.
This setback arrives just 72 hours after City’s European ambitions were ended by a 3-0 loss to Real Madrid, effectively dismantling what had recently appeared to be a quadruple challenge.
Guardiola said: “It’s complicated. We win against Nottingham, it depends on us, now it depends on them.”
He added: “But we have one game in hand, we have Arsenal at home, I’m not saying it will be easy to beat them, but at home I’m always positive.
“When it’s not possible, after I don’t know, half an hour, an hour, because they have to celebrate, I’ll call Mikel (Arteta) and congratulate him.
“But since this is going to happen, we want to be there because, of course, we have a lot of things to do.”
Bernardo Silva broke the deadlock on 31 minutes, though fortune played its part as his attempted cross towards Erling Haaland instead looped over West Ham keeper Mads Hermansen for an accidental chip.
Pep Guardiola has conceded that Manchester City’s pursuit of the Premier League title has become ‘complicated’
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The advantage proved short-lived, lasting merely four minutes before former Arsenal defender Konstantinos Mavropanos nodded home the equaliser.
Gianluigi Donnarumma misjudged Jarrod Bowen’s corner completely, gifting the Greek centre-back an uncontested header.
Haaland’s struggles continued, with the Norwegian now managing only three goals across his last 12 league appearances.
Despite the setback, City retain a fixture in hand over their rivals and will host Arsenal at the Etihad before the season concludes.
Five things to know about Man City boss Pep Guardiola | PA/GETTYHowever, this represents their second dropped point in ten days, having previously been held by Nottingham Forest.
Guardiola himself had warned prior to the match that the title race would be “over” should his team fail to secure maximum points, with Arsenal’s late victory against Everton just 20 minutes before kick-off intensifying the pressure.
The Spaniard observed proceedings from the directors’ box whilst serving a touchline suspension following his booking at Newcastle in last weekend’s FA Cup tie.
He quipped: “I saw it in my perfect position today. I confirm right now that I will be more aggressive for the referees, to get more yellow cards, to go more often in the stands. The position is much better. So, Howard Webb, educate your referees that I’m coming.”
Haaland’s struggles continued, with the Norwegian now managing only three goals across his last 12 league appearances
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It was also a big night at the other end of the pitch, with a point lifting West Ham out of the relegation zone for the first time since December.
Boss Nuno Espirito Santo said: “There was no other way. You have to recognise the quality of your opponent and defend.
“We defended higher and better. We didn’t allow too many situations for City to break us down.
“It was a very good defensive performance. It was heroic from our boys.”
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