The Spanish manager believes that the current table does not lie and that Jose Mourinho’s side cannot be taken lightly.
Pep Guardiola believes Tottenham are vying for the Premier League title, but the Manchester City manager believes it could be the most open title race since coming to England.
City suffered a 2-0 defeat to Tottenham on Saturday, leaving them 11th in the table, eight points behind leader Spurs, but played one game less.
Having scored just 10 goals in eight league games, this is the city’s worst comeback since only six were managed after so many matches in 2006-07.
Guardiola said Jose Mourinho’s Spurs deserved to be considered a threat to the title because he showed a lack of goals in his favor.
Goal 50 Revealed: The World’s Top 50 Players
“He’s at the top of the league. So obviously he’s more of a contender than anyone else at the moment,” he told a news conference.
“Of course, there are a lot of points to play, we are eight points down, we have one game less, but we have a lot of teams in front of us. We have to start winning games, if that doesn’t happen it’s not possible, we know it. We have to try to win games, we know that.
“In terms of the game, I don’t think we’re very far away, but we’re struggling to get goals right now, and it’s not specifically for one person or another. The fact is, 10 goals “is not good enough.”
Since arriving in City in 2016, Guardiola has helped the club win two Premier League titles – 19 points and one bottom in 2017-18.
The other two are Chelsea with seven points in 2016-17 and Liverpool with 18 last season.
Guardiola thinks it could be the most open title race since arriving in England, with the Spurs clearing just five points from Aston Villa in sixth place.
“Well, first year, I remember Chelsea. Yes, it was very tight at first, but in the end they take advantage. The second season, and the third, and the fourth, it was twice as clear for the city and once for Liverpool.” He said.
“It simply came to our notice then [the most open title race], But again this is nine [sic] Games I think we’ve played a lot yet.
“We’ll see, you know how to play a lot of games this season. We’ll see.”
City’s return of 12 points from eight matches is their lowest at this stage of the Premier League campaign since 2008-09, when they accumulated 10 points.
