Pep Guardiola's mindset is just to enjoy leading Manchester City in the Champions League rather than worrying about talk of a "disaster" if they still cannot win Europe's elite club competition.

Guardiola won the Champions League twice while Barcelona coach but has failed to add to that haul in otherwise successful stints in charge of Bayern Munich and City.

Perennial Premier League champions City have been repeatedly frustrated in Europe, consigned to upset losses to Monaco, Liverpool, Tottenham and Lyon in the knockout stages in Guardiola's first four seasons.

City then reached the final in 2020-21, only to again come up short against Chelsea.

Last year, there was a painful semi-final reverse at the hands of eventual champions Real Madrid, increasing external pressure on one of the greatest coaches of the modern game.

But ahead of entering the knockout rounds again against RB Leipzig on Wednesday, Guardiola revealed he has learned to look at life very differently – influenced by the negative outlook of others.

"From the first season, I get this," he said initially. "I arrive here, and people say, 'you arrive here to win the Champions League'."

Guardiola then added: "I would say if my career finished tomorrow, if I could not be manager literally tomorrow, I would be more than blessed with what I've done at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and here in Europe and in other competitions.

"I could never expect to have the career I had in this short time. Not just the success we had all together over this period of 13, 14 years, but for the fact the way we played, this way I love it. I couldn't ask more.

"We want to do our best. What's going to happen is going to happen. In the end, destiny is already written. We'll do our best, as we have done. We have been close sometimes, sometimes not, sometimes closer.

"This is my feeling. I lived that position. I had the feeling of what we have done, all of us for many years, whatever happened, it is going to fail.

"Whatever I do personally in the future, whatever I have done in the past, I'm going to fail. Nothing will be enough.

"When I learned that, I just have fun, enjoy being here in this press conference. After, a good dinner with good wine, watch Liverpool-Madrid, a little bit Napoli, always a pleasure, prepare well the game.

"Leave it for the players: let's go, guys, try to do it again."

Guardiola said he had started to feel like this "a long time ago" but "mainly at City".

He continued: "Everyone put the perspective that everything is a disaster if you don't win some prizes. But I don't know if everyone put this perspective on themselves.

"I don't want to put pressure on myself. I'm blessed to be here.

"I never thought when I arrived, we have to win every year the Premier League, or every year we have to win three or four Champions Leagues. Except Real Madrid, the rest cannot do it.

"We just try to do what we have done. The last two seasons we have been really close and played really good games. We'll try to do it again."

Kevin De Bruyne and Aymeric Laporte will miss Manchester City's away game against RB Leipzig with illness, Pep Guardiola revealed.

De Bruyne and Laporte were surprise absences from the City squad for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

But Guardiola was able to confirm the nature of their problems after landing in Germany.

The City manager was unsure if either player – both of whom started against Nottingham Forest on Saturday – would return for this weekend's game at Bournemouth, having come down with illness in recent days.

Those absences will leave Guardiola with decisions to make around his team selection, although he had already been provoking some curiosity by naming Bernardo Silva, a midfielder, at left-back.

Fabian Delph and Oleksandr Zinchenko fulfilled that role previously, but Silva struggled against Arsenal's Bukayo Saka and then appeared to be at fault for Forest's equaliser on Saturday.

Guardiola said he was "not so stupid to think Bernardo is a full-back" as he explained his thought-process.

"People say we conceded the goal on the left side because Bernardo's playing there, but people don't realise – the view is like he's a left-back who has to defend in that position," he said.

"Bernardo helped us to do what we had done against Nottingham Forest. Without Bernardo, it was not possible to concede [only] one counter-attack and one or two actions at the end and [have] the amount of control of the game."

Kevin De Bruyne and Aymeric Laporte have been left out of Manchester City's squad to play RB Leipzig in the Champions League on Wednesday.

John Stones is also absent from the group, although he has been missing since January with a hamstring injury.

There was no immediate explanation for De Bruyne and Laporte not travelling to Germany, with Pep Guardiola due to meet the media later on Tuesday.

Both players started Saturday's 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest. De Bruyne was substituted in the 88th minute, while Laporte completed the match.

Meanwhile, Leipzig were hoping to have Christopher Nkunku available after he returned to action for the first time since November.

Having played at Wolfsburg at the weekend, Nkunku could not complete Leipzig's full training session on Tuesday, the club said, due to a muscle issue.

Erling Haaland is the striker Manchester City needed and suggestions the Norwegian only scores "easy" goals are "a lie", according to his team-mate Ederson.

Haaland has scored 32 goals in 31 appearances for City across all competitions since his move from Borussia Dortmund last year – more than any other player from Europe's top five leagues.

He has hit 26 of those goals in the Premier League, but with City struggling to pull clear of Arsenal and Manchester United in the title race, the 22-year-old has attracted criticism recently.

Arsenal great Thierry Henry suggested Tottenham's Harry Kane may have been a better fit for City, while former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher said Haaland "might have picked the wrong club".

However, Ederson believes Haaland is well-suited to City's style, though he acknowledges Pep Guardiola's men have had to adapt to his characteristics. 

"When he arrived, we said he was going to score a lot – and that's been happening. He is a brilliant goalscorer, he always looks to score and help the team," Ederson told UEFA.com.

"He is the striker we needed, because in comparison to Gabriel [Jesus], they are different players. Gabi likes to come in from out wide, he is stronger and more versatile. Haaland plays more centrally, looking to get into the box, he is a target in the area. 

"That has been the major difference. When you get into the final third you have someone who will always be in the area.

"Many people say most of the goals he scores are easy – but that is a lie. It's his positioning – that's his best ability. He doesn't score easy goals, he positions himself very well. 

"I hope he continues to score many goals, making us happy and we'll keep working together for all the titles."

City return to Champions League action when they visit RB Leipzig for the first leg of their last-16 tie on Wednesday, and with Haaland netting 28 times in 23 appearances in the competition throughout his career, the club hope his finishing ability will help deliver their first European crown.

Ederson is in no doubt as to the importance of continental success to City, saying: "That's our main objective, the main objective of the club. 

"We've been trying [to win it] and will carry on trying. We haven't won it yet, we reached the final [in 2021], and a few semi-finals, and we didn't come out of it with a good result. 

"But I think this year, we're more than capable of getting to the final and challenging for the title.

"Now this title is what the club needs, it's what we athletes need and it's what Guardiola needs here at the club, too. This year, we're going to try. We're going after it."

Haaland scored six goals in four appearances against Leipzig during his time with Dortmund, averaging a goal every 60 minutes against them. 

Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola praised Phil Foden for his "aggressive" display in Saturday's 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest, which marked his first start in a month.

Foden had been consigned to the bench in City's past four league games, coming on as a substitute in three of them, but got the nod from the start against Forest.

The 22-year-old English midfielder impressed Guardiola, having not started since City's Manchester derby loss to United on January 14.

"He played really good," Guardiola said. "First half he was so aggressive against [Renan] Lodi and he arrived many times to the byline.

"Still he didn't have the poise or composure that he had because it’s normal, because he didn’t play much.

"Everything today was so aggressive and he played really good."

The Spaniard assured that Foden, along with other players who have been rotated lately, will get their chances.

"He has to compete with everyone else," Guardiola said. "He trained really well with the other players. The competition is for them.

"What I have to say is don't be frustrated, perform as best as possible. And after that it will be easy."

Saturday's draw came despite City generating 23 shots compared to Forest's four, with six on target.

Guardiola felt his side did not get what they "deserved" but lamented their failure to capitalise on the chances they generated, referencing their midweek 3-1 win over Arsenal, who re-claimed top spot with their 4-2 win over Aston Villa.

"When I see expected goals after the game and the way we played and the chances we concede or create, always we are there, we are on top," he said.

"Arsenal played really good but they shot one shot or two chances in general. We try to play to create more chances, not concede goals and be as stable as a team. In general we have been there most of the games.

"I don't think we got what we deserved but football is not about getting what you deserve. At the end, you have to score the goals."

Erling Haaland should be valued at €1billion in the current transfer market, according to the Manchester City star's agent.

The Norway international has taken the Premier League by storm since joining from Borussia Dortmund, scoring 32 goals in all competitions.

That is five more than his nearest challenger, Kylian Mbappe, across Europe's top five leagues this season, with the Paris Saint-Germain forward repeatedly drawing interest from Real Madrid.

Carlo Ancelotti's Spanish and European champions have previously also been credited with an interest in Haaland, whose agent Rafaela Pimenta believes it would take a record-breaking fee to secure his services.

"Erling Haaland is worth €1billion. That's not a guess, I'm sure of it," Pimenta told French broadcaster Telefoot.

"They might say I'm being ridiculous, that a club is not going to pay a billion, but his age, his quality, his progression and the way he behaves is why I talk about a billion.

"The future is unknown, but it's coming."

Pimenta has a host of high-profile players on her books after taking over Mino Raiola's agency following the super agent's death last year.

PSG and Italy midfielder Marco Verratti is one of her clients, although Pimenta does not envisage the 30-year-old leaving the Parc des Princes.

Pimenta added: "It's impossible to imagine Verratti anywhere else. Never! He just loves PSG."

Marcus Rashford is in talks over an extension on his Manchester United contract, which currently expires in mid-2024.

Rashford has scored 22 goals in all competitions this season, including a run of 14 strikes in 16 games.

Last off-season, United triggered a one-year option to prevent him becoming a free agent in June but interest in Rashford is ramping up amid his hot form.

TOP STORY – MAN UTD PLACE £120M PRICE ON RASHFORD

Manchester United have slapped a bumper £120 million price tag on in-form forward Marcus Rashford to ward off interest, claims The Daily Star.

Rashford, who is in the form of his life, has been the subject of reported interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid.

Barcelona are also monitoring Rashford according to the report, with United are desperate to retain his services amid talk of a change of ownership at Old Trafford.

ROUND-UP

– Chelsea and Bayern Munich are among the clubs lining up to sign 19-year-old Atalanta defender Giorgio Scalvini who is valued at €40m according to Football Italia.

– Manchester City are set to reward Nathan Ake with a new contract offer, which represents a 50 per cent pay rise, according to the Daily Star. The Dutchman's weekly wages will rise from £80,000 to £120,000.

– Juventus will rival Liverpool in trying to sign Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount in the off-season, claims CalciomercatoWeb.

– Fichajes reports Tottenham are looking to sign Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger after this season.

– Newcastle United want to bolster their ranks by luring Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot, according to Fichajes. Rabiot's contract expires next season.

– Football Insider reports Liverpool are tracking 19-year-old Independiente defender Kevin Mantilla who impressed during the recent Under-20 South American Under-20 Championship with Colombia. The Reds have held preliminary talks with Mantilla.

The Premier League title race took another twist on Saturday, with Arsenal now back atop the pile.

Manchester City's 3-1 win at Emirates Stadium in midweek had seemingly given them control of the two-horse race for the trophy.

But City's failure to build on that success and Arsenal's late heroics on the road at Aston Villa mean the Gunners have a two-point lead over Pep Guardiola's men with a game in hand.

Elsewhere, Liverpool boosted their top-four aspirations while denting those of Newcastle United, who have now won just one of their last seven Premier League games.

Here, Stats Perform looks at Saturday's biggest games through the lens of Opta data.

Aston Villa 2-4 Arsenal: Jorginho and Martinelli produce late show

Saturday saw Arsenal reassume command of what is fast becoming an engrossing title race, but it looked for a long time as if they would suffer another setback.

The Gunners appeared set to settle for a 2-2 draw at Villa Park, only for Jorginho's rasping injury-time drive to cannon off the crossbar and then deflect in off Emiliano Martinez. Gabriel Martinelli made it 4-2 in the 98th minute.

It marked the first time Arsenal have scored a 90th-minute winner away from home in the league since Martinelli netted against Crystal Palace in May 2021, which was also the last time they scored twice in the 90th minute in the same game in the competition.

Arsenal's joy should be tempered somewhat by defensive concerns.

Indeed, Arsenal have now conceded the opening goal in four of their last five Premier League games, one more than they did in their first 18 games of the 2022-23 campaign (3).

Chelsea 0-1 Southampton: Saints pile pressure on Potter

The result was overshadowed by the head injury suffered by Cesar Azpilicueta, but it was an extremely significant one for Southampton, who boosted their survival hopes by completing the league double against Chelsea for the first time since the 1987-88 season.

Defeat for Chelsea was their first at home against the team starting the day bottom of the Premier League table for the first time since April 2014 vs Sunderland (1-2).

The Blues have lost three of their last six Premier League home games (W2 D1), as many defeats as in their previous 25 league games at Stamford Bridge combined (W13 D9), that run piling the pressure on manager Graham Potter.

Chelsea's latest home loss was engineered by James Ward-Prowse, who in scoring his 17th direct free-kick goal in the Premier League moved just one behind record holder David Beckham (18), netting 13 of them away from home.

Nottingham Forest 1-1 Manchester City: Forest hold champions at bay

If Forest do manage to stay up, their home from will be a significant reason why. They are unbeaten in eight home games in the Premier League (W4 D4), their best home unbeaten run in the top-flight since a 20-game stretch between February 1995 and January 1996.

Prior to this stalemate, Forest had lost their last seven Premier League games against the reigning champions, by an aggregate score of 29-3, including a 6-0 defeat to Man City earlier this season. They avoided defeat against the reigning champions for the first time since December 1994, when they beat Manchester United.

Bernardo Silva's fine opener initially looked like it would be enough for City to take all three points and return to the top of the league, and continued a recent theme for the Portugal international, who has 32 Premier League goals for the club. Three of his last four goals in the competition have been scored from outside the box, with only three of his first 28 coming from distance.

Jack Grealish laid on the assist for Silva. Grealish has been directly involved in six goals (2 goals, 4 assists) in the Premier League since the conclusion of the World Cup. Grealish had one goal and no assists in eight league appearances this season prior to the World Cup break.

Newcastle United 0-2 Liverpool: Pope sends Magpies hopes up in smoke

Newcastle have an EFL Cup final with Manchester United to look forward to next Sunday, but they will be without goalkeeper Nick Pope after his red card in this one for handling the ball outside the area.

Pope's red card was the fifth instance of a Newcastle goalkeeper being sent off in the Premier League, with only Liverpool and Aston Villa (6 each) seeing more keeper reds in the competition. 

He conceded twice before being sent off in the 22nd minute - the earliest a goalkeeper has conceded twice and been sent off in a Premier League game.

Those two goals came inside 17 minutes and were as many as Newcastle had conceded in their previous eight Premier League games combined, proving enough to extend the Magpies' winless league run against Liverpool to 13 matches (D4 L9) and end their 17-game unbeaten run in the competition.

The Reds are the only team to beat Newcastle in the Premier League this season, with victory coming on the back of just their second away clean sheet in 2022-23.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola bemoaned his side's wastefulness in front of goal as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

The champions looked set to return to the Premier League summit thanks to Bernardo Silva's wonderful first-half strike after being usurped by Arsenal earlier on Saturday.

Chris Wood popped up late on, though, to deny them all three points as Forest avoided defeat against the reigning champions for the first time since December 1994, when they beat Manchester United.

City squandered a host of glorious opportunities to extend their lead before Wood's intervention, with Erling Haaland guilty of one particularly glaring miss, and Guardiola was disappointed with his side's profligacy.

"Congratulations to Nottingham for the point that they got," the City boss said.

"It was a brilliant performance, we played really good but we didn't score. We have to score and we didn't do it and that's why we dropped points.

"For the goal we could defend better, more energy but the way we played was brilliant.

"In the first half, it should be already be two- or three-zero, we conceded one shot on target and we dropped points.

"It's sad and disappointing but the way we played was really good."

The result meant City have failed to beat a promoted side in the Premier League for the first time since April 2021 when they lost against Leeds United – they had won nine such games in a row before the draw with Forest.

City defender Kyle Walker was less diplomatic than his manager, stating that City's failure to take all three points back to Manchester was "unacceptable".

"First and foremost, we go to the Emirates [where they beat Arsenal in midweek] and play the game we did and then come here, it [the performance] is unacceptable," he said.

"If we want to compete with teams near the top, we need to win. We missed a few chances and we need to do better as a team.

"Sometimes it's football and sometimes it's emotion. Every game should be treated the same, like a cup final. What can I say other than it is unacceptable. We have to stick together as a group.

"The senior members of the team need to put our thoughts across. That is just not acceptable. We have to give credit to Nottingham Forest. They dug in and hung on. We have to do better."

Manchester City missed the chance to return to the Premier League summit as Chris Wood's late goal secured a 1-1 draw for Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

Pep Guardiola's men had been usurped after Arsenal's last-gasp win over Aston Villa earlier in the day, but they looked set to reclaim top spot thanks to Bernardo Silva's sumptuous first-half strike.

City wasted a host of glorious opportunities to extend their lead in the second half, with Erling Haaland guilty of one particularly glaring miss, and they were duly punished late on.

Substitute Wood popped up at the back post to score his first goal for the club to punish City's profligacy and hand Arsenal the advantage in the title race.

Liverpool are reportedly keeping a close eye on Chelsea's Mason Mount as negotiations for a contract extension continue to stall.

Mount, 24, has been with Chelsea since he was six years old, racking up 190 appearances and 33 goals for the club since breaking into the first team for the 2019-20 season.

An England regular with 36 international caps, Mount is a crucial part of Chelsea's midfield options, although his minutes have been far less secure under Graham Potter than previous managers.

Of his 19 Premier League starts this campaign, Mount has been subbed off 12 times, and the club are reportedly hesitant to meet his contract demands.

TOP STORY – LIVERPOOL MONITOR MOUNT AS HIS CONTRACT WINDS DOWN

Mount only has one more season remaining on his deal before he will be able to leave on a free transfer, and the Daily Mail is reporting Liverpool are hovering for an opportunity to pry him away.

The report claims Mount is aiming to triple his current £80,000-per-week wages, which would bring him in line with recent transfer acquisitions, as well as 23-year-old team-mate Reece James, who was rewarded with a £250,000-per-week deal in September.

If Chelsea are not able to lock up their talented midfielder by the end of the season, they will likely be forced into a sale.

ROUND-UP

– According to 90min, Manchester City have renewed their interest in 24-year-old West Ham midfielder Declan Rice as they plan a midfield rebuild.

– The Evening Standard is reporting Chelsea and Juventus have mutual interest in converting Denis Zakaria's loan move into a permanent deal, with an optional buy-clause set at £27m (€30m).

– Aston Villa will try to sign 25-year-old Roma striker Tammy Abraham at the end of the season, who is believed to be valued around £40m (€44m), per 90min.

– Footmercato is reporting Paris Saint-Germain have been in contact with Roma boss Jose Mourinho about potentially taking over from Christophe Galtier, although the French giants prefer Zinedine Zidane.

Pep Guardiola wants Manchester City to emulate the great Tiger Woods by never giving up in their title tussle with Arsenal.

City beat the Gunners 3-1 in a thrilling encounter at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday to move top of the Premier League.

The defending champions have played a game more than Arsenal and are only top on goal difference, however, with Guardiola convinced his team have had some good fortune.

Yet he pointed to golf legend and 15-time major champion Woods – who returned to the PGA Tour this week for the first time since suffering serious leg injuries in a car crash in 2021 – as a source of inspiration.

"Right now, we could be 10 or 12 points behind. We are a bit lucky," he told reporters ahead of Saturday's trip to Nottingham Forest. 

"If [Arsenal] won at Everton when they played to win, we lost at Spurs, we lost to Arsenal then we are 10 points behind and the game is over.

"Now we could be 10-12 points behind even [with Arsenal having played] one game less. We're top of the league after two nights when they have been top all season.

"You never, ever, ever can give up. The biggest athletes never do. This weekend is the best weekend because Tiger is back. He's playing at the Genesis Invitational.

"We have to learn from the greatest and he never gives up. He is two over, one over, then finishes the last round with birdie, birdie, birdie. Never give up, continue until the end."

Guardiola said in the wake of City's win in north London that his first-half tactics had been "horrible".

Bernardo Silva was deployed as a left-back until Manuel Akanji replaced Riyad Mahrez early in the second half,  enabling the Portugal international to switch to the right wing.

City, who took the lead through Kevin De Bruyne but were pegged back by Bukayo Saka's penalty, went on to clinch the points through Jack Grealish and Erling Haaland.

"I meant in general how I imagined the game, it didn't work, not because Bernardo played left-back," said Guardiola, explaining his post-match comments.

"If it works I am brave, if it doesn't work I am overthinking. Arrogant. 'What is Pep believing, changing tactics? Why don't you play Kevin De Bruyne all the time? Why don't you play the other ones?'

"Because Kevin De Bruyne cannot play all the games. He needs to be fresh here [in the head]. He has to get the message, he can do better.

"I cannot go to sleep or wake up in the morning, have something inside of me visualising what the opponent can do and think: 'The normal thing is play the starting XI that people around the world say is the best.'

"In 14 years, starting with the second team Barcelona, I never took a decision like: 'I am going [to show off].'"

Haaland's neat finish brought up his 26th league goal of the season, though City's use of their star striker had been called into question after the 1-0 loss at Spurs.

Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher went as far as to say Haaland "might have picked the wrong club to actually get the best out of him".

Asked about Carragher's comments, Guardiola said: "I understand it. What can I say – I'm open to all opinions. So [Jamie] will have his argument.

"It's important I have the feeling that [Haaland] feels so happy here. Committed. Not because he already scored 26 goals, but it was a surprise for all of us, a real surprise.

"We didn't know him. We knew his stats, his numbers, his laughs when he played at Dortmund, but we are all of us really surprised at how he is as a boy – because he's a boy."

Guardiola is also hopeful Ilkay Gundogan will sign a new contract at City, with his deal set to expire at the end of the season.

Arsenal and Manchester City have been charged by the Football Association for surrounding referee Anthony Taylor during Wednesday's Premier League clash.

Defending champions City replaced the Gunners at the top of the table with a 3-1 victory at Emirates Stadium.

Tensions were high during such a huge showdown between the top two in the battle for the title.

The FA on Friday announced both clubs had been charged for allegedly failing to ensure their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion in relation to three incidents that saw official Taylor confronted.

A statement from the governing body said: "Arsenal and Manchester City have been charged after their players surrounded the match official at different times during the Premier League fixture on Wednesday 15 February.

"It's alleged both clubs failed to ensure their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion, with Arsenal's players surrounding the match official during the 56th minute, and Manchester City's doing so during the 42nd and 64th minutes.

"Both clubs have until Tuesday 21 February to provide their respective responses."

Pep Guardiola claims Manchester City are in the position he "dreamed" of at the beginning of the season as he urged Kevin De Bruyne and Jack Grealish to keep them top of the Premier League.

It remains a nip-and-tuck title race, but Guardiola is more than happy with City's standing within that battle for silverware after they nudged into top spot with victory at Arsenal.

He insists Arsenal remain firmly in the hunt but would have settled for this situation, being confident his City team can apply a kick finish and leave their rivals scrapping over second place.

Manchester United could yet have a big say in the destiny of the title, being just five points adrift, but City and Arsenal are the frontrunners for now, locked on 51 points.

"Arsenal still have one game in hand, so nothing has changed much," Guardiola said initially at Friday's press conference ahead of the weekend trip to Nottingham Forest.

He later pointed to City's mindset in Premier League campaigns and their view that nothing is won early in the season.

The gap to Arsenal reached eight points at one stage, but it has been clawed back, with the Gunners suffering a dip in form.

City have the scent of a third successive Premier League title and a fifth in six seasons.

"We were aware we had to put the shoes on again and try to be close to the top of the league, and now we are there, we are close," Guardiola said.

"There are still 15 games left, a lot of games, but we want to arrive at the last eight, 10 games, being there, close, top or close to the top of the league."

Guardiola added: "We have to make the last rush, the last effort. The last weeks have helped us, for the results of Arsenal but especially for the victories we have done.

"We are in the position I would have dreamed at the beginning of the season.

"I could not expect to be a lot of points in front; after winning back to back, it's almost impossible."

All the same, Guardiola is not buying into talk of City momentum.

"Momentum is where you win 10 games in a row, and that didn't happen this season. We lost three games ago in London against Tottenham, so momentum is tomorrow at 3pm be ready mentally against a team who have lost one game in their last six," he said.

De Bruyne and Grealish, City's midfield pearls, both scored in the 3-1 win at Arsenal on Wednesday.

Neither man has been guaranteed a start, with De Bruyne notably benched for the Tottenham game.

But Guardiola spoke of the influence both can now have, hailing Grealish's "ambition and his aggressivity" to attack defences.

"The quality was always there but his commitment to take a risk in important decisions is making the difference. But he has to continue," Guardiola said.

It was a similar message for De Bruyne, whose form Guardiola described as "really good".

"It's like Jack and like everyone, I'm so pleased for everyone, but I want more," Guardiola said. "So I still have the feeling Kevin can do more, Jack can do more and can do better.

"They can do it. Of course, he made a fantastic goal, but I know the demands we have here until the end of the season and a tough and aggressive opponent, and we need the players to have the feeling we can do better."

The manager also said it was healthy for City's players sometimes to have discussions without him present.

"It's good," Guardiola said, "because at the end they play, and they are the artists, and they have to take the solutions and decisions and everything that is going on on the pitch, and I cannot be involved in that."

Mikel Arteta felt there were "a lot of positives" to take from a defeat to Manchester City but wants his Arsenal side to be more efficient.

City replaced the Gunners at the top of the Premier League table with a 3-1 win at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.

Arsenal, who have a game in hand on the champions, are without a win in four matches in all competitions and need a response when they travel for a reunion with former boss Unai Emery and his Aston Villa side on Saturday.

However, manager Arteta is confident Arsenal can rediscover the sort of form that had at one stage given them an eight-point cushion over City at the summit.

"I know the right things we have to do to continue to be there [at the top]," the Spaniard said.

"We have seen where the level is and what we have to do to be at that level. There are a lot of positive things to take, for sure, from the season so far [and the loss to City].

"We know that the level of efficiency has to be good with every single game to beat them [City] at the end.

"We are highly motivated to do that."

He added of the defeat to Pep Guardiola's men: "You have to give credit to a team when they beat you, but when you analyse the game again, I think we lost it."

Arteta says Arsenal are relishing the opportunity to return to the top of the table when they face Villa.

He said: "It is normal that you want to get maximum points, which we didn't in the last few games. We have to improve because we want to win more games.

"So we are highly motivated for tomorrow's game because we want to perform well and win the game."

Meanwhile, Arteta condemned the behaviour of fans who threw objects at City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, who opened the scoring in the blockbuster midweek clash.

"Our fans were extraordinary in the game with their level of support and the way they helped to inspire the team," he said.

"There was an incident at the end that no-one is going to tolerate within this stadium and the club is investigating."