Guardiola admits that the Premier League title is no longer in City’s hands.

In a thrilling and tension-filled conclusion, Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, admitted that the battle for the Premier League title slipped from his team’s grasp after a chaotic 3-3 draw against Everton last Monday. The Spanish coach did not hide his frustration after a match that could have propelled the Citizens to the top of the league.

“It’s no longer in our hands, it was before, but now it’s not,” Guardiola revealed with a tone of bitter resignation. With only four games remaining in the Premier League, the coach emphasized that every match will be crucial: “They will be quite similar, and we will see what happens.”

Manchester City had a golden opportunity to level with Arsenal at the top of the table — a victory against Everton and another against Brentford five days later could have put the team on par with the leaders. However, the reality is harsh: the Citizens are now five points behind Arsenal, although they have a game in hand, and they rely on a slip from the Gunners to keep their title hopes alive.

Guardiola, always demanding, highlighted that saving a point was better than losing, but made it clear that the objective remains victory: “It’s better than losing. We want to win, we play for that and we showed what a team is. We tried everything, the players were aggressive.”

The very narrative of the game reflected the drama of the season. Jeremy Doku, the Belgian winger on loan at Everton, shone with a last-minute goal in the 97th minute that sealed the draw and left City licking their wounds. The player shared the pain of his team but kept the flame alive: “It’s painful now, but there are still many games and anything can happen. We will keep fighting. We owe it to ourselves and to our fans.”

With the Premier League reaching its climax, Manchester City faces a steep and obstacle-filled road. The title is no longer in their hands, but the battle is far from lost — it remains to be seen whether Guardiola’s team will have the strength and courage to turn the fate of the championship in the final four games. The tension is at its peak, and the eyes of the football world are glued to this frantic race. What will the outcome be? The answer will only come in the coming weeks, but one thing is certain: the drama is guaranteed.

This article first appeared on Apito Final.