Man City boss Pep Guardiola sends Eric Garcia transfer message to Barcelona

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola has seen enough from Liverpool to still consider them title rivals. Manchester City are 13 points ahead of the Premier League champions with a game in hand after they beat Tottenham 3-0 hours after Liverpool had collapsed to a 3-1 defeat at Leicester.

direct to your inboxArsene Wenger thinks it's 'impossible' for Liverpool to catch Manchester City this season and has backed Pep Guardiola's side for the Premier League title.City picked up a superb 4-1 victory over the reigning champions last weekend to extend their advantage to 10 points with a game in-hand. Manchester United are in second-place, five points behind their neighbours, but have also played a game more.

straight to your inboxWhen Pep Guardiola, serial winner and excuse avoider, started whingeing that four minutes of added time is not enough, against the team second from bottom, the depth of the problem became apparent.Manchester City were down in ninth place after that stultifying 1-1 draw at home to West Bromwich Albion.They were not even in the conversation when the destiny of the Premier League title was discussed, and there was even talk among the more impatient Blues of the manager’s time

straight to your inboxKevin De Bruyne has returned to individual training as he continues to recover from injury.Manchester City have been without their talisman for the last five games since picking up an injury in the 2-0 win over Aston Villa three weeks ago.

straight to your inboxJurgen Klopp sounded on Friday like a man who was getting in his excuses ahead of Liverpool's title crunch with Manchester City.The Anfield manager's crass - and untrue - comments about the Blues having a two-week "Covid break" which had helped their push to the top of the table, sparked some sharp responses from his opposite number.It surprised and puzzled Pep Guardiola, who said he had thought the German was "not that type of manager".The City boss promised to question

straight to your inboxThere were no deadline day surprises at Manchester City as the January transfer window passed with little activity around the first team.Pep Guardiola repeatedly insisted that City were happy to stick with their current squad, despite injury issues in the forward department. However, City turned down the chance to re-sign former favourite Edin Dzeko, while a move for Diego Costa was never on the cards.

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola has labelled Manchester City captain Fernandinho as an 'authentic leader' and believes he is a great example for Rodri to follow in the defensive-midfield position. Despite suffering an injury setback at the start of the season, Fernandinho, 35, has enjoyed a brilliant return to form in recent weeks which may lead to his contract, which is set to expire in the summer, be extended once again.

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola has admitted that Manchester City star Bernardo Silva 'struggled' in the aftermath of his ban last season over an offensive tweet.Bernardo was suspended for one game in November, 2019, after he compared teammate Benjamin Mendy to a character on a packet of Conguitos chocolates in a social media post.

straight to your inboxManchester City have turned down the chance to sign Roma striker Edin Dzeko in the January transfer window.Dzeko, 34, spent five years at the Etihad and won Premier League titles under both Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini before moving to Serie A side Roma in 2016.

straight to your inboxNew Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has revealed he spoke with Pep Guardiola before taking the job at Stamford Bridge.Tuchel took charge of Chelsea for the first time on Wednesday night in a goalless draw with Wolves after replacing Frank Lampard as manager earlier this week. The 47-year-old knows Guardiola well after they faced each other in Germany when the Man City boss was at Bayern Munich and Tuchel was in charge of first Mainz and then Borussia Dortmund.

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola has backed Thomas Tuchel to gain success at Chelsea.The German has been appointed head coach at Stamford Bridge following Frank Lampard's sacking earlier this week. He is a manager that Man City boss Guardiola knows well, with the two having faced each other in Germany on a number of occasions.

direct to your inboxGareth Taylor heaped praise on Chloe Kelly as Manchester City Women netted seven goals for the second successive week. After a 7-0 victory over Aston Villa last weekend in the Barclays FA Women’s Super League, City followed it up with a 7-1 win away at Brighton & Hove Albion.

straight to your inboxManchester City manager Pep Guardiola had a special request to make after hearing that his star-studded squad will be changing in a bar for the FA Cup tie at Cheltenham tomorrow.The Blues head to the Jonny-Rocks Stadium for the fourth round tie, and Covid-19 restrictions mean the normal dressing rooms are too close to those of the home side.To comply with pandemic rules, City will be given a lounge underneath the stands, the same as Cheltenham’s normal League Two

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola was left hoping on Wednesday night that the injuries that forced Kyle Walker and Kevin De Bruyne off against Aston Villa will not be too serious.Manchester City continued their good form, winning their sixth straight league game and ninth in all competitions to reach the Premier League summit for the first time this season thanks to late goals from Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan.However, they had to make do without two of their starting XI for long spells.

straight to your inboxManchester City will be again without Sergio Aguero and Aymeric Laporte when they face Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow.But French defender Laporte - who has not played for the Blues since the Carabao Cup quarter-final win at Arsenal before Christmas - could be in line for a return to the side in the FA Cup fourth round tie at Cheltenham on Saturday.Pep Guardiola said that Aguero, who has been self-isolating after coming into contact with someone who tested