Guardiola: Man City not unbeatable vs Mourinho’s Tottenham

MANCHESTER City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted that his side could still be vulnerable despite going on a record unbeaten run.

City have set an English record by winning 15 straight matches in all competitions, the longest run by a top flight side in the country’s football history.

However, as the Premier League leaders face Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, Guardiola is wary of Jose Mourinho’s side.

“We’re not unbeatable,” Guardiola, who was named January Premier League Manager of the Month, said during his pre-match press conference on Friday.

“The 15 games in a row winning didn’t help us start 2-0 up. I said many times, it’s nice, it’s good and it helped us be where we are in Carabao Cup, FA Cup, Champions League and Premier League. Fifteen wins helped us be where we are – but no more than that.

“We have to start again tomorrow. This is the target. We try to recover, see who they are, what they have done when we played there and we need to know what to do to play better and to beat them.

“That’s my only concern in the three days since Swansea.”

City were beaten 2-0 in their first meeting with Tottenham and Guardiola is keen to avoid another defeat to his long-term rival Mourinho.

The former Barcelona boss said: “It’s nice [15 wins]. In Bayern and Barcelona we also made good runs. It’s a consequence of things game by game. Stats are nice but stats don’t help win the next one. The next one is Tottenham.

“We did really well (in the first meeting). “We lost because they were better in many aspects than us in that game [Spurs away]. “You see the quality of the players they have and the manager, it’s a strong team. We have to do better tomorrow to beat them.”

The rivalry between Guardiola and Mourinho has been on for more than 10 years since when they were both managing in Spain, and the City boss holds the former Real Madrid manager in high regard.

“Pretty much the same,” Guardiola said of the rivalry. “Means we are working for many, many years, that’s good for us. If we face each other many times, it is because we do the job we love. He’s a good contender.”

Guardiola believes his side must guard against Tottenham’s devastating counterattacks as well as defend better against set pieces.

“The counter attack can be controlled when you play with simplicity,” he explained.

“Counter attacks are controlled by eleven players, not just one or two. The quality of Bergwijn, Lucas, Ndombele, Kane, Son. They have strong points.

“Set pieces is another one. We saw against Everton how strong they are with set pieces. They have quality in these situations. That’s why it’s Tottenham. They are always fighting for Premier League and Champions League positions.”

Manchester City are on top of the Premier League table with 50 points from 22 matches, seven spots and 14 points ahead of Tottenham Hotspur.