Trending 
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola believes that the club can keep pace with Arsenal in the Premier League title race if they maintain the level of performance shown in Saturday’s 3-0 win over Sunderland.
City closed the gap on the league leaders to two points as Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and Phil Foden scored in a comfortable victory over the Black Cats, who suffered only their fourth defeat in 15 top-flight matches.
The result provided a marked contrast to City’s recent struggles, having needed a stoppage-time Foden goal to secure a 3-2 victory at Leeds and nearly surrendering a 5-1 lead at Fulham before eventually winning 5-4.
Guardiola welcomed the fact that his side sustained momentum throughout Saturday’s match, reversing a pattern of second-half drop-offs that had plagued them earlier in the season.
“In my experience, winning the Premier League comes down to consistency,” Guardiola said. “It’s about how you play and grow, whether you’re 2-1 behind or 4-1 ahead. Today was maybe one of our best performances for 95 minutes.”
The City manager stressed that the team’s focus must remain on performance rather than luck, especially with Arsenal still to visit the Etihad in April and aiming to end a 22-year title drought.
“In the Premier League, you have to win games based on your performance, not on a lucky moment,” he added. “We must continue to perform consistently, because one bad half or one bad game can cost you.”
