Manchester City defender Josko Gvardiol says his team have two finals left after he continued his fine form by scoring twice in the 4-0 win over Fulham that returned the champions to the top of the table and explained why he refused the chance to score a hat-trick at Craven Cottage.
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The Croat opened the scoring and made it 3-0 as he took his tally to five goals in seven matches in all competitions for Man City, who went above Arsenal to regain the lead and put the pressure on the Gunners, who need to beat Manchester United on Sunday to reclaim top spot in the title race.
When asked by TNT Sports what the secret was to his goalscoring form, Gvardiol replied: "Nothing different, I think that is normal in sport. Currently I am in good form and end of the season is coming, two more finals and we've got to be ready.
"Another great performance, not just from me but the team as well. It was a very good goal, but today we showed who we are and what we are ready for."
Gvardiol even had a chance to claim a hat-trick when City were awarded a penalty in stoppage time. Team-mate Kyle Walker seemed to suggest that Gvardiol should take the penalty but the Croat ceded to regular taker Julian Alvarez, who had come on for Erling Haaland.
“We discussed about me taking the penalty, and of course I would have liked to, but we have a taker and he takes them,” Gvardiol said. “At the end Julian came on and he took it to score the goal."
The margin of victory also meant that City closed the goal difference gap on Arsenal to only two and Gvardiol said that this had been a topic of conversation among City’s players.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Man City
MCI
|
38 | +62 | 91 |
| 2 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
38 | +62 | 89 |
| 3 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
38 | +45 | 82 |
"We just need to be focused on ourselves and keep going that way,” he said. “Of course we talk about it [goal difference] and as you can see we are trying to get there. But it is not easy, Arsenal have quality as well and they are doing quite well as well."
Man City next travel to Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday, where they have yet to win in the league and claimed a late victory in the FA Cup this season. "Another final,” Gvardiol said. “I played only once there and it was difficult. Hopefully it is going to be another good game and another good day for us."
'Players enjoy pressure'
Pep Guardiola hailed his players’ response to being under pressure.
"The great players enjoy playing with great pressure,” the City boss told BBC Match of the Day. “These players in the last few years have been able to do it and we are again in the latter stages. Our dream is as we said a few weeks ago when they [Arsenal] lost against Aston Villa was to arrive in the last games with it in our hands, to play West Ham at home with the destiny belonging to us.”
As to Gvardiol's goal tally, Guardiola admitted it was “absolutely unexpected”, whom he joked was the "best winger on the planet".
“He is unbelievable with both feet,” Guardiola said. “Normally the left is difficult to find, he is more comfortable with his right. Second half he was not at his best, lot a lot of balls, and as a defender you have to be tight. For him to add the goals he is it is more than welcome, but he has to be more tight. But he is 21 years old he will improve.”