Manchester City head coach, Pep Guardiola, has admitted that Liverpool are their biggest rivals as both teams lock horns on Saturday afternoon in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, news.ng reports.
City qualified after beating Newcastle United 3-1 on March 7, while Liverpool recorded the same scoreline in their tie against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Looking at both teams’ performances against each other in their last five meetings, the two sides have recorded two wins each and one draw.
Meanwhile, Guardiola, during a pre-match conference, affirmed the quality of players Liverpool possesses after the Merseyside club spent over £400 million in the summer transfer window.
“I have said many times, it has been the biggest rival,” said Pep.
“It’s a team that made an incredible investment last season to be there for many, many years.
“It’s in the Champions League. It’s a top contender with top-class players all of them, and hopefully we perform at the level like we did against Arsenal to make the next step.”
In the FA Cup fixtures, Chelsea host Port Vale (5:15 pm), Arsenal will travel to Southampton (8:00 pm), while West Ham will slog it out with Leeds United on Sunday.
However, amid the huge investment the Reds have made so far, there have been questions about the inability of the players and head coach Arne Slot to improve performances on the field of play.
As players return from the international break to resume league action, Liverpool will try to secure a spot in the UEFA Champions League next season, as they are currently fifth on the table with 49 points, with Chelsea trailing on 48.
City, on the other hand, are keeping hope alive, trailing league leaders Arsenal by nine points with 61.
