Guardiola: Liverpool Game Is Final For Us

By Nigel Phillips

Manchester City’s manager Pep Guardiola has described Thursday night’s clash with Liverpool as a make-or-break for his side.

The Spaniard thinks Manchester City’s Premier League hopes will virtually be over should they lose the match day-21 clash to Liverpool.

Manchester City engage Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium sitting 3rd on the 2018/19 Premier League table with 38 points, seven points adrift Jurgen Klopp’s side who tops the log with 54 points.

A win for Manchester City could see the side reduce the deficit to four points while a defeat will push Liverpool ten points clear, and Guardiola has told reporters that the latter will virtually bring to a close his charge to defending the title which he won last season.

"We know how important it is," said Guardiola. "If we are not able to win, especially if we lose – 10 points, goal difference 11 – if they continue that run it will be so difficult. It's almost a final for us. For them, nothing changes."

Guardiola also supported Liverpool’s decision to spend a world-record fee of £75 million to sign Virgil Van Dijk saying that the stability that the player has brought to the team’s back and the consistency he has shown justify the price tag.

The Anfield outfit broke the bank to sign the Dutch centre-back from Southampton, halfway into the 2017/18 season, as Jurgen Klopp needed a top-class defender to address his side’s defensive frailties

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"He's an exceptional player," Guardiola told reporters about Van Dijk. "When a player costs, whatever it costs and it works, it is well worth it.”

"When you pay less and it doesn't work, it is so expensive. If he can play every three days with no injuries and plays consistently, it is well worth it."