‘They will be there’ – Guardiola wary of Manchester United threat in the Premier League | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola is expecting multiple teams to challenge Man City for the Premier League title, naming Manchester United among six clubs he believes can push his team of champions.

City won a fourth consecutive Premier League title in 2023/24 after Arsenal finished runners-up and one point worse off.

Guardiola is in the final year of his contract at the Etihad Stadium and it could be time for City, who have 115 charges of financial corruption hanging over their heads, to wind down on the title-winning front.

The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager has won six titles in eight seasons since arriving at City in 2016, but he is not underestimating the challenge that awaits after naming six teams he is expecting to battle with this season.

Guardiola, 53, named City’s upcoming opponents Chelsea as well as Manchester United among the six teams City will be wary of. He believes the work United have done in the transfer market will make them a force to be reckoned with this season.

“Always at the beginning of the season, the first target is to finish in the top four,” Guardiola told reporters, as quoted by The Mirror.

“People say: ‘Oh, come on’, I said ‘no’. Newcastle are not in Europe and are going to play one game a week. Newcastle with one game a week this season will be the Newcastle of two seasons ago.

“Arsenal are not necessary to talk about. Liverpool are not necessary to talk about. I know the signings of United, they are going to take the momentum and they will be there.

“Tottenham, I’m pretty sure they invest and with the young players and the manager knows better. There are a lot of teams – Chelsea again, the amount of players and their quality and the manager. Six or seven teams will be there and if you drop a little bit, you will be away.

“This is the reality that I have felt since the first season I arrived here and after we proved to ourselves that we can do it and to try to do it again. It’s simple.”

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City take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge this afternoon. They didn’t get the best results during pre-season, but Guardiola’s side won the Community Shield against United on penalties last weekend.

Now is when the results actually matter.

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