Manchester City remain ‘away’ from being a Premier League title-winning team, insists Pep Guardiola | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola has stressed there is plenty of work still to do in order for Manchester City to become a Premier League title-winning team this season.

The Catalan’s comments followed a convincing 3-0 victory over West Ham at the Etihad Stadium, a result that extended Manchester City’s winning run and kept them firmly in the Premier League title conversation heading deeper into the Christmas period.

Goals from Erling Haaland and a dominant first-half display that also featured a strike from Tijjani Reijnders ensured a comfortable afternoon on the scoreboard. However, as has been a recurring theme in recent press conferences, Guardiola was keen to separate results from performance levels.

While City have climbed into strong positions across competitions – including progress in the Champions League and the Carabao Cup – the manager has consistently highlighted areas of the game he believes fall short of championship standards.

That concern has centred largely on Manchester City’s play in possession, particularly their positional discipline and fluidity against different defensive structures. Pep Guardiola has previously alluded to a need to rediscover the principles that underpinned City’s most dominant seasons, rather than relying on individual quality or moments of inspiration.

Speaking on City’s performance in their latest victory in the Premier League, Pep Guardiola told reporters, “Defensively we’re improving, we can visualise it. With the ball, we’re AWAY from what we have to do… The way you attack depends on the opponents and how they defend, and you have to be in the right spots, right positions to make more fluid. And we were not, no way.

“I’m happy, I cannot deny; we’re in the Champions League fourth [position], semi-finals of the Carabao Cup, up there in the Premier League. But the way we play with the ball, we have to improve otherwise it’ll not be enough to arrive in March, April being contenders.

The Manchester City manager continued, “But I want to be honest with myself, I said to the players, ‘So I’m happy, Merry Christmas for everyone’, but it will not be enough if we don’t improve! It will not be enough.”

On whether he feels as though the current City side have the potential to become one of his best iterations at the club, Guardiola explained, “Yeah, we will be there [competing for the title]. If they follow me, we will be there. But we have to improve!

“I know the level in Europe, the Premier League, Arsenal, other teams, how tough they are. But it’s not enough. The spirit is there, we didn’t have that last season – the spirit, aggression, hunger – all these attributes. It’s not about highlights, the big, big how good the action [is].

“No, there is some things that come from inside that we had and we’ll recover. I told you from the [Club] World Cup in the States, but the next step is some players and hopefully Rodri is back, and many, many things you have to do better!”

However, Guardiola reminded, “We cannot forget Jeremy is not here, Kova is not here, Rodri is not here, Omar Marmoush is not here, Rayan Ait-Nouri is not here but he didn’t play much but we need him – Nico O’Reilly cannot play every three days 90 minutes in this role.

“So we have four or five players from the Academy today on the bench. Honestly, don’t misunderstand me, I’m delighted, I’m happy that these guys are top because they follow us and they give the life.

“But if you want to reach the next step, if they [opponents] play in a diamond, five-in-the-back, or four in the back there are spaces and different ways. And in that you have to be there, the right spots – that defines the team, the positional game. And today, it was not good.”

Pep Guardiola’s remarks underline a familiar message in that results alone will not satisfy the Manchester City manager if performances do not align with his tactical ideals. The emphasis on missing personnel – most notably Rodri – also reinforces how squad availability has shaped City’s approach this season.

Looking ahead, Manchester City’s challenge will be translating their evident spirit and resilience into sustained control with the ball, particularly against elite opponents.

With key players expected to return in the coming months, Pep Guardiola clearly believes the ceiling remains high – but only if his side can close the gap between where they are now and where he believes a true title-winning team must be.