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Pep Guardiola has no illusions about the task his Manchester City team will face if they want to challenge Liverpool again for the Premier League title.
Jurgen Klopp’s men scored on Saturday by beating Crystal Palace 7-0 at Selhurst Park.
Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah scored twice, with Takumi Minamino, Sadio Mane and Jordan Henderson also on target for the reigning champions.
The resounding result left Liverpool six points clear at the top of the table, following a 2-1 victory over their closest rival Tottenham Hotspur.
Last season’s runners-up City responded with a close 1-0 win over Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium.
Raheem Sterling scored the only goal of the game for the visitors, who had drawn 1-1 for West Bromwich Albion in their previous match.
Southampton’s result lifted City, which started the day in ninth place, to fifth in the table (temporarily, at least).
However, they are already eight points behind Liverpool, albeit one game short, and still struggling to find their best form.
When asked how far his team was from competing for the title, Guardiola told Amazon Prime Sport: “We are (very far) away. Look at the table.”
* Who was your MOTM against Palace? Take our quick vote here.
Recalling that Liverpool had played one more game, the Spaniard replied: “Okay, but it’s a lot of points. They still have the momentum in terms of goals.”
“They scored seven goals at Crystal Palace away from home and against Tottenham I saw how well they played.
“There is no question about how good Liverpool is, but I told the guys to forget about that, to think about it on very high things.
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“When you are ninth in the table, next week you try to be eighth in the table, then seventh in the table.
“After you try to qualify for the Europa League and then the Champions. Then any situation happens.
“We cannot concentrate too much (on the top) because we have lost points. This is football.”
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