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

The Catalan is plainly irritated by the contrasting coverage of Jurgen Klopp’s achievements at Anfield, but it has helped sustain his team’s success.

Pep Guardiola claims that when he arrived at Manchester City, former assistant coach Brian Kidd advised him not to focus on the League Cup. “Play the younger players,” Kidd recommended. “Nobody cares.” However, Guardiola did not listen. He took the event seriously and led City to four straight victories between 2018 and 2021, but he believed he received little recognition for his efforts.

The animosity was palpable, with Guardiola obviously believing that the press was portraying Liverpool’s victories in 2022 and 2024 in a totally different light than those of City – and not for the first time in his career…

No credit for the city?
Guardiola suggested in May 2019, after City had narrowly beaten Liverpool to the Premier League title, that his team’s triumphs were taken for granted, and that they were virtually 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,” he remarked. “If Liverpool had won the Premier League, it would have been a ‘amazing’ accomplishment. When City wins, people say, ‘Oh, it’s fine. “It’s an accomplishment…”

Advertisement Getty ‘Everyone in this country supports Liverpool.’
Three years later, when City was embroiled in another nail-biting title struggle with Liverpool, which they would win by a single point, Guardiola went even farther, declaring in an interview with beIN Sports that “everyone in this country supports Liverpool, the media and everyone.”

It was an absolutely ridiculous claim. If Guardiola had just stated that several ex-Liverpool players worked in the media (Jamie Carragher, Danny Murphy, Jamie Redknapp, etc.), that would have sufficed. He may have contended that certain pundits were not unbiased.

However, claiming that everyone in England supports Liverpool was ludicrous, especially given how many rival clubs engage in ‘tragedy shouting’ at Anfield while insulting Merseyside’s socioeconomic problems.

Guardiola then humiliated himself further by making a petty comment to Liverpool’s comparatively dismal Premier League record. “Liverpool has an incredible history in European competition,” he went on to say. “[But] not in the Premier League, which has only won one title in the last 30 years. But it isn’t an issue at all.”

Guardiola’s continuous sniping suggests otherwise.

Is it our fault?
When the legitimacy of City’s title victories was called into question after the club was charged with 115 breaches of Premier League financial laws between 2009 and 2018, he raged: “I don’t know if we are responsible for Steven Gerrard sliding [in 2014]… Is this our fault?

Both City and their manager insisted that the line about Liverpool fans lying “battered in the street” was not a sick shot at Sean Cox, who suffered life-changing injuries after being assaulted outside Anfield by Roma fans, but neither the club nor Guardiola felt compelled to explain why singing such a lyric was acceptable in the first place.

Riyad Mahrez Manchester City Liverpool 2022–23
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‘They are sick of us.’
At the end of the day, City’s apparent disdain for Liverpool has been a blessing for Guardiola. After all, it’s difficult to keep successful superstars motivated.

Basketball legend Michael Jordan had run out of worthy competitors, so he invented adversaries to keep himself hungry – because, for some, bringing others down can be just as rewarding as being on top. Indeed, Guardiola’s City have publicly revelled in not only winning five Premier League titles, but also limiting Liverpool to only one during Klopp’s golden era at Anfield.

“Liverpool is a mad team. They are an excellent team. “But I know they hate us,” former winger Riyad Mahrez told Canal+ in May 2022. “They’re tired of us because if we weren’t there, they’d have won everything every year.” But we’re here, and we’re not going anywhere. We’ll be here again next year.”

Jurgen Klopp Pep Guardiola, Premier League 2021-22
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Pep’s City and Klopp’s Liverpool are inextricably linked.
In that way, Liverpool has helped maintain City not only on top of their game, but also at the top of the league. They just would not have won so many championships or broken so many records without the Reds, because they would not have had to play so hard and for as long.

When Klopp announced his impending departure, Guardiola himself stated, “I was shocked, like everyone, by the news, as I felt a part of Man City would be lost.” We cannot characterise our time here without him and Liverpool; it is unthinkable.

Of course, others argue that Liverpool and Manchester City are not one of English football’s greatest rivalries because Guardiola and Klopp hold such high regard for one another. Guardiola has long held Anfield in high regard, but he also admits to being envious of the mood it creates.

He effectively accused the Etihad Stadium audience of falling asleep during the two sides’ first Premier League encounter of the season, and he is acutely aware that Klopp will not have to wake them up when they meet again on Sunday.

There’s no doubt that Guardiola will be determined to win in front of supporters at Anfield, because his lone prior success came behind closed doors during the Covid-19 pandemic.

There would be no better time to do it, either, with Liverpool desperately needing to pick up three points, which would be a significant aid in their effort to ensure Klopp leaves with a second Premier League title, a scenario that will horrify City and hence push them.

Pep Guardiola Kosta Tsimikas Manchester City Liverpool 2022–23
Is Getty City right to feel wronged?
Just look at the satisfaction Guardiola felt after defeating Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium last season, when the Reds were not even in the title chase. He even celebrated a goal in front of Kostas Tsimikas.

So, one can be certain that the news of Klopp’s summer departure – and, more crucially, the outpouring of passion that has accompanied it – would have only strengthened Man City’s resolve to win a fourth straight title, as it would mean spoiling the German’s farewell party. They simply do not want Liverpool to receive any of the credit that they believe they are consistently denied.

Is City correct to feel wronged? Should Pep and his players be both envious and upset by the way the media fawned over Klopp and his children after winning the Carabao Cup? In a way, it’s irrelevant.

Finally, the assumption that no one cares if they win the same titles as Liverpool has aided City rather than hurt them. Because, while a love of winning has unquestionably fueled City’s long-term success, a hatred of losing to Liverpool has also contributed.