"Beat Liverpool 4-0!" - Guardiola sends message to Southampton as Liverpool-Manchester City Premier League title race approaches climax
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has delivered a tongue-in-cheek comment to Southampton ahead of their clash with Liverpool on Tuesday.
The 51-year-old was speaking to Sky Sports after his side's enthralling 2-2 draw away to West Ham on Sunday.
He was asked whether he had any comments for the Saints, to which he jokingly replied:
"I would say, beat Liverpool four-zero!"
Speaking further on the title potentially going down to the final day, Guardiola added:
"The big, big privilege we have is that, at home, it's in our hands. We don't have to look at anything else other than ourselves. We just have to give everything.
"I said [to the players], 'Don't be sad today because we gave a really good performance.' It's fair, against this opponent, to arrive at the last day to decide who gets the title because both teams are so good.''
Manchester City showed great determination to claw back from a two-goal deficit at halftime to snatch a point in a 2-2 draw away to West Ham. Riyad Mahrez fluffed his line from 12 yards when his late penalty was saved by Łukasz Fabianski.
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The draw saw the defending champions move four points clear of Liverpool, having played one more game.
The Reds could cut the deficit to one point if they claim a win away to Southampton on Tuesday and this would see the title decided on the final day.
City will, however, be crowned champions if Jurgen Klopp's side fall to defeat at St Mary's, while a draw is also to their advantage, owing to their superior goal difference.
Can the rest of the Premier League catch up to Manchester City and Liverpool next season?
The Premier League is often regarded as the most competitive league in the world, with fans of the competition chiding other leagues for their utter dominance by one team.
However, on closer inspection, the English top-flight is slowly becoming a one-team league, with Manchester City on the brink of winning four titles in the last five years.
Furthermore, two of their last three league crowns were won at a canter, with only Liverpool in 2018-19 pushing them to the limit.
On other occasions, Pep Guardiola's side hardly broke sweat and were crowned league champions with a fair amount of matches to go.
The 2018-19 season is being re-enacted this term, with both Manchester City and Liverpool going toe-to-toe in their bid to be crowned the best team in England.
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It is not just in the league where their dominance has been exerted. The Reds have now made it to three UEFA Champions League finals in the last five years and have won both domestic cup competitions on offer this season.
Pep Guardiola's side famously won a four-peat of the League Cup crown, while they also became the first side in English footballing history to win a 'domestic treble.'
They have not had as much success on the continent but it takes nothing away from their spectacular achievements domestically.
Right now, there is a noticeable gap between the top two and the rest of the chasing pack, with the so-called 'Big Six' now seemingly a media gimmick with little substance.
Neither Arsenal, Manchester United nor Tottenham Hotspur are on the path to contesting for the title anytime soon.
Chelsea are almost always in the mix but have fallen some way off, while their ownership change means the new era might take some time to get into full gear.
The Premier League is famed for its intricacies and flipped scripts. However, by all indications, Manchester City and Liverpool's dominance in English football could be set to continue for the near future.