“I don’t know” – Pep Guardiola expresses key concern over narrow Manchester City victories | OneFootball

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted his side’s newfound habit of securing narrow wins is not sustainable amid a quadruple quest.

The Blues took another step in the right direction at the weekend as Antoine Semenyo’s finish from Rayan Ait-Nouri’s cross helped Guardiola’s side leave Elland Road with a 1-0 win over Leeds United to mount further pressure on Premier League leaders Arsenal.

Responding in typical Gunners fashion, Arsenal cornered Chelsea and secured a second London derby triumph in the space of a week courtesy of a 2-1 win at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday evening.

City have won six on the bounce in all competitions as they remain alive in all four competitions, having also progressed to the Carabao Cup final, FA Cup fifth round and the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.

After a poor start to 2026 that saw City squander leads leading to draws against Chelsea, Brighton and Tottenham in the first five weeks of the calendar year, the tide has well and truly turned at the Etihad Stadium.

A combination of January signings hitting the mark right away, key defenders returning from injury and City rediscovering their feet in front of goal has helped the Blues turn a corner as they look to go from strength to strength and build on their recent momentum.

However, Guardiola’s men have been cutting it very close in recent weeks and have managed to just get over the line in their last two Premier League wins against Newcastle United and Leeds United.

Speaking after Saturday’s narrow win at Elland Road, the Manchester City manager gave an honest verdict on the guilt-edged nature of his side’s recent triumphs.

On whether Manchester City may need some more comfortable games and bigger margin victories, Guardiola added: “Yeah, I don’t know (if it’s sustainable). I said to the players, ‘Score five goals today’. But they don’t follow me. If it looks easy this business, you are wrong.

“All respect for you. It was easier today (against Leeds United) than the past, for the way we played and we controlled the game. It’s not easy when they make a lot of transitions and they have chances and today they didn’t have much.

“We didn’t have much, but from there we built up; some players are coming back, Jeremy (Doku) is back, Erling (Haaland) will be back. And as much as you have players fit, we will do it. That team (Leeds United) drew in Stamford Bridge, right? And that team drew in the 88th minute when it was 0-1 at Aston Villa – two teams in the Champions League.

“It’s an incredible team, Daniel (Farke) has made an incredible team. So it’s not easy. ‘Ah but battles every day’, I don’t know! Always I think when you arrive with three months left, everything is mindset. It’s, ‘Okay, one game at a time’ and do everything to win the game, it’s what we have to do.”

Guardiola is hoping to recall Erling Haaland when Manchester City welcome Nottingham Forest to the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night, with Nico O’Reilly facing a race against time to recover after being substituted against Leeds United due to an ankle injury.