Kamal Ghorui
LONDON: Pep Guardiola insists he “couldn’t care less” about Arsenal’s stumble letting Manchester City back into the Premier League title race.Guardiola’s side were in danger of being blown away by Arsenal after their inconsistent form left the Gunners in pole position.But second-placed City have been handed a lifeline by Arsenal’s damaging draws against Wolves and Brentford.They are now just five points behind Arsenal with a game in hand and a home match against Mikel Arteta’s men to come in April.If City win their remaining 12 matches they will be crowned champions for the fifth time in the last six seasons.But Guardiola is not getting carried away by the opportunity.Instead, he remains focused on Saturday’s visit from Newcastle, when a win would close the gap on Arsenal to two points before the Gunners face Tottenham in the north London derby on Sunday.“I didn’t talk about the table, or our position or something like that. I could not care less,” Guardiola told reporters on Friday.“I didn’t talk about that for one second. Just Newcastle, Newcastle, Newcastle.“If you ask me this question with two or three games left, I will have your answer. It’s 12 games left, it’s an eternity.”Having won six titles during 10 years at City, Guardiola knows the final weeks of the season will bring more twists and turns.He also has experience of watching Arsenal let substantial leads slip away in the 2023 and 2024 title races, allowing City to snatch the trophy from their grasp.“Many things are going to happen until the end of the season. For now it is Newcastle, a rest and after it Leeds. It has always been like that,” he said.“Seventy per cent of the players are new, so they don’t have the experience to live these kinds of situations. An experience is to win tomorrow. It is only one.“Arsenal were nine points (ahead) when we had a game in hand, so whenever everybody is on the same games played then after that we will see the difference.“I understand you want to anticipate what is going to happen. That doesn’t count. It is Newcastle, that is all.”Meanwhile, Guardiola said racism remains a problem for society to cure rather than just football.Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior claimed he was racially abused by Benfica winger Gianluca Prestianni during a Champions League tie this week.The match was paused in line with UEFA regulations after Vinicius alleged he was abused after celebrating scoring.“There is a lot of work still to do. It is in the society, it is not just in football. Racism is everywhere,” Guardiola said. “You pretend that racism is just for the colour of the skin? How you behave is racism. “It’s how you pretend you are better than the other one just for many reasons.”
