Man City’s Pep Guardiola sends brutal 11-word message to Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta on Premier League title ‘pressure’

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has made it crystal clear that he will not offer any advice to Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta on coping with the ‘pressure’ that comes with challenging for the Premier League title.

Guardiola has won a total of six Premier League trophies during his illustrious career at the Etihad Stadium, including an unprecedented four successive triumphs between 2021 and 2024.

The legendary Catalan coach is aiming to win a seventh English top-flight title this term, but he is tasked with chasing down an Arsenal outfit who are desperate to end their 22-year wait for Premier League glory.

Man City currently sit second in the table and five points behind leaders Arsenal, but the Citizens have a game in hand and can reduce the gap at the summit to just two points with a victory at Leeds United on Saturday evening.

Three important Premier League wins in a row against reigning champions Liverpool, Fulham and Newcastle – winning 2-1 against the latter last weekend – have thrusted Man City back into the title race at a time when Arsenal have dropped points in five of their last eight league fixtures.

Frustrating back-to-back draws with Brentford and basement club Wolves for the Gunners were followed by a morale-boosting 4-1 away victory over North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur last weekend, and a home encounter with Chelsea on Sunday is up next.

Arsenal have spent over 150 days at the Premier League summit, but many have questioned whether Arteta’s squad have the nerve to fend off stiff competition from Man City heading down the home straight, while also juggling other domestic and continental duties.

The Gunners have fallen short in each of the last three Premier league seasons, finishing second on each occasion, and will be aware of Man City’s knack for putting together trademark winning runs in the latter stages of a campaign.

While Arteta has only won one major trophy as a manager - the FA Cup five years ago - Guardiola has lifted 18 trophies as Man City boss alone, as well as multiple honours at previous clubs Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

Guardiola “not here to give advice” to Arteta in Premier League title race

Speaking at a press conference on Friday ahead of Man City’s trip to Leeds on Saturday, Guardiola was asked to reflect on winning his first league title as a manager with Barcelona and the pressure he felt at the time.

However, the 55-year-old was not in the mood for sharing his thoughts on that success or shedding any light on the predicament Arteta currently faces in pursuit of his first top-flight trophy, saying: "I don't remember. I'm not here to give advice to Mikel."

Instead of offering advice to his former Man City assistant, Guardiola was keen to express how challenging Saturday’s clash with Leeds will be and how he hopes that an extended midweek rest will benefit his players.

Guardiola talks up Leeds test, midweek Man City break

“Elland Road is Elland Road and Daniel [Farke has] made [good] last results,” Guardiola told reporters “They went to Stamford Bridge (Chelsea) and Villa Park (Aston Villa) and got [good] results. They have even the boost of the home crowd, but we’re ready for this challenge again.

“In 10 years I’ve not been to Elland Road many times. Since Marcelo Bielsa promoted them to the Premier League we’ve been there and it’s an incredible stadium with a good vibe. We know it.

“I think there are a lot of Premier League stadiums that are traditional and really good, Elland Road is one of them.”

“You know the idea, it’s not to go to the Maldives,” Guardiola added when asked about his players having a midweek break. “Since September, October they didn’t have long weeks so the moment you can have it, I learned in this country less is more.

“When you can train less because of the schedule, you have to clean the mind and legs to come back better.

“If we win, it’ll have been perfect, if not we have to play every three days. We’ve had our rest. We’ve made really good training sessions and we’re ready for Elland Road.”

Meanwhile, Guardiola has reacted to Man City’s Champions League last-16 draw with Real Madrid and has provided a positive update on the fitness of winger Jeremy Doku.