Pep Guardiola’s Man City are jealous of Liverpool’s positive press – but that bitterness can drive the champions to yet another Premier League title

Although the disparate coverage of Jurgen Klopp’s accomplishments at Anfield has certainly irritated the Catalan, it has contributed to his team’s success.

According to Pep Guardiola, former assistant coach Brian Kidd encouraged him not to worry about the League Cup when he first started at Manchester City. Kidd said, “Play the young players.” “Nobody cares.” But Guardiola paid no attention. He thought he received little recognition for leading City to four straight victories between 2018 and 2021, despite the fact that he took the competition seriously.

Guardiola was obviously resentful, believing that the media was portraying Liverpool’s victories in 2022 and 2024 in a totally different light than City’s—and that this was not the first time, in his opinion.

Not a single mention of City?
In May 2019, following City’s narrow victory over Liverpool in the Premier League, Guardiola made remarks implying that his team’s accomplishments were taken for granted and that they were essentially victims of their own success.

“Liverpool have gone 29 years without winning the Premier League – so it’s normal people are waiting for them to finally win,” the former manager of Barcelona stated. “But it would have been a ‘amazing’ accomplishment if Liverpool had won the Premier League. ‘Oh, it’s OK’ is the reaction when City wins. It is an accomplishment.

“Everyone in this country supports Liverpool,” says the advertisement from Getty.
Three years later, Guardiola went one step further and declared in an interview with beIN Sports that “everyone in this country supports Liverpool, the media and everyone,” as City and Liverpool were engaged in another intense title battle that City would ultimately win by a single point.

It was a completely absurd assertion. It would have been acceptable if Guardiola had only mentioned that a number of former Liverpool players, such as Jamie Carragher, Danny Murphy, Jamie Redknapp, and others, are currently employed in the media. He may have countered that a number of pundits lacked objectivity.

But to claim that all of England is a Liverpool fan was plain ridiculous, especially in light of the fact that so many other teams participate in “tragedy chanting” at Anfield, making fun of Merseyside’s socioeconomic woes.

Then, in an even more embarrassing move, Guardiola brought up the Reds’ rather dismal Premier League record. “Liverpool has an incredible history in European competition,” he stated. “[But] not in the Premier League, as they have only had one [title] in the previous thirty years. However, it’s not at all problematic.

However, Guardiola’s persistent sniping would seem to indicate otherwise.

“Is it our fault?”
Upon hearing that City had committed 115 violations of Premier League financial laws between 2009 and 2018, he became enraged and said, “I don’t know if we are responsible for Steven Gerrard slipping [in 2014].” Is it our fault?

Guardiola and City did not feel obliged to clarify why singing a lyric that mentioned Liverpool fans lying “battered in the street” was okay. Guardiola and City both insisted that the line did not refer to Sean Cox, who was attacked by Roma fans outside Anfield and sustained life-threatening injuries.

Mahrez Riyad 2022–2023 Manchester City Liverpool
Getty
“They are tired of us.”
Ultimately, though, Guardiola has found great relief in City’s seeming animosity towards Liverpool. After all, maintaining a successful superstar’s motivation is no small feat.

The legendary basketball player Michael Jordan used to make up opponents in order to stay hungry since, to some, being the best may sometimes be just as fulfilling as being the best. In fact, Guardiola’s City have publicly celebrated not just their five Premier League victories but also keeping Liverpool to just one throughout Klopp’s illustrious tenure at Anfield.

“The Liverpool team is insane. They make an excellent team. But in May 2022, former winger Riyad Mahrez told Canal+, “I know they hate us.” “They’re tired of us because they would have won every year if we hadn’t been here. However, we’re here to stay and won’t be leaving, and we’ll be back next year.”

Klopp, J. Pep Guardiola’s 2021–22 Premier League
Getty
Liverpool under Klopp and Pep’s City are inextricably intertwined
Liverpool has therefore really contributed to keeping City at the top of the league as well as at the top of their game. Without the Reds, they simply would not have been able to break so many records or win so many championships because they would not have needed to play so hard for so long.

When Klopp announced his impending departure, Guardiola stated, “Like everyone else, I was shocked by the news, as I felt a part of Man City would be lost.” It is impossible for us to identify our time together without him and Liverpool.”

Of course, it has been said that because Guardiola and Klopp value each other so highly, Liverpool and Manchester City cannot be regarded as one of the biggest rivals in English football. Guardiola has always had the utmost regard for Anfield, but it’s also true that he envies the atmosphere the team creates.

During the two clubs’ opening Premier League match of the season, he essentially accused the Etihad audience of being sleepy, and he is keenly aware that when they play again on Sunday, Klopp won’t have to wake them up.

Guardiola’s lone previous triumph came during the Covid-19 pandemic, so it goes without saying that he will be motivated to win in front of Anfield supporters for the first time ever.

No better moment to do it, either, as Liverpool is anxious to win three points, which would be a major boost to their efforts to guarantee Klopp leaves with a second Premier League title, something that would scare and motivate City.

Guardiola, Pep Tsimikas Kostas 2022–2023 Manchester City Liverpool
Is Getty City correct to feel mistreated?
Just take a look at the happiness Guardiola felt after defeating Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium the previous season, when the Reds weren’t even contending for the championship. He even celebrated a goal right in Kostas Tsimikas’ face.

As winning a fourth straight title would mean spoiling the German’s goodbye party, one can be certain that Man City will be even more motivated to win it after learning of Klopp’s summer departure and, more crucially, the outpouring of passion that goes along with it. They just won’t accept Liverpool receiving any of the recognition they believe they deserve so frequently.

Is City justified in feeling so betrayed? Should Pep and his team be both envious of and irritated with the way the media gushed about Klopp and his children following their Carabao Cup victory? It is, in a sense, unimportant.

In the end, City has benefited rather than suffered from the notion that no one is bothered when they win the same titles as Liverpool. Because while City’s continuous success has undoubtedly been fueled by a love of winning, a dislike of losing to Liverpool has also been beneficial.