Grim prediction: Guardiola believes Manchester City may finish seventh or eighth in the Premier League

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola claimed that his team might finish seventh or eighth in the ongoing English Premier League. Such a shocking statement was made by the Spaniard hours after City defeated Everton 2-1 on New Year's Day. As we speak, the Sky Blues are 11 points behind league leaders, Liverpool, after playing two games more than the Reds.

The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss said, "I'm so delighted about the performance. Being far away from the first position, after being champions for the previous two seasons, teams in normal situations give up and can finish seventh or eighth in the table. Maybe we're going to finish seventh or eighth in the table, but not because we don't try."

It seems that Guardiola was referencing Chelsea's 10th place finish in 2015-16, after winning the League in the previous season, and Leicester's 12th placed finish in season following their first title triumph. Manchester City won the Premier League title in 2018 with a record 100 points. In 2019, they lifted the title once again after narrowly beating Liverpool.

Liverpool has been enjoying terrific form throughout 2019. After lifting the UEFA Champions League trophy, Jurgen Klopp's men have won 18 of their 19 Premier League games this season. They are yet to lose a match and their only draw came against Manchester United.

All these signs establish the high probability that the Reds might win their first league title since 1990. However, their German boss wants to focus on the present.

Last week, Klopp stated that he doesn't want his men to get carried away. Talking about his team participating in New Year parties, Klopp said that when there's a party, he loves to be 100% a part of it. But right now, he has a big task at hand and it seems the German is determined to bring the Premier League title to Anfield at all costs, even if it means sacrificing momentary fun for that.

Liverpool has played 19 League games this season and has collected 55 points. In contrast, Guardiola's men have played 21 matches and gathered 44 points. The Sky Blues are positioned third. Leicester City is second with 45 points to their name.