Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool will try to be "smart" with their recruitment in the upcoming transfer window and insists he is motivated to get the Reds firing again.

Liverpool have endured a torrid season, sitting in eighth place in the Premier League with nine games remaining, with Champions League qualification looking unlikely, and out of all cup competitions.

Fans were further agitated by reports last week that the club had ended their pursuit of Jude Bellingham due to Borussia Dortmund's asking price.

Speaking to Sky Sports ahead of Liverpool's trip to Leeds United on Monday, Klopp said people will just have to "wait and see" when it comes to their transfer plans.

"There's really nothing to say. You have to wait until we finish our business and then you will see what we did," he said.

"We have to be ready for praise or criticism. We'll work from the first day of the new season with the boys and we'll really go for it – that's much more important.

"All the rest is speculation from the media. We have nothing to do with that."

Liverpool have been linked with players such as Mason Mount, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch in recent weeks, and Klopp expressed his belief that those in charge of transfers at the club are well-placed to solve their issues.

"We always try to be smart in our recruitment," Klopp said. "I am 100 per cent sure that if you gave the power stick to a few people, then next season we'd bring in 20 new players.

"If you gave it to a few others, then we'd bring old players back when we were successful before and stuff like this. We are in charge, that's what we decided on and let's go from there.

"It's an interesting period, very interesting and we always try to be smart in the transfer market, so it's not completely new to us."

Klopp is coming to the end of his eighth season in charge at Anfield, with three more years left on his contract, and he remains as driven as ever despite this season's difficulties.

"Yes, I am still motivated," he said. "Maybe even more, because now I know everybody here and I feel even more responsible for everything.

"I've said it a couple of times, it's a little bit strange when you have to say 'I'm fully in' because maybe people from the outside question it. But no, motivation is absolutely not my problem."

The German believes he has identified the problems he must solve, and is "looking forward" to the challenge, adding: "The way we defend, that must be much clearer.

"We also have to work on the way we attack and how we control games. It's a big job, but it's something I'm looking forward to."

Keylor Navas believes he could help Paris Saint-Germain win the Champions League next season and feels capable of playing for "any team."

The 36-year-old Costa Rica international swapped life in the French capital for a Premier League relegation battle by joining Nottingham Forest on loan for the rest of the season in January.

Navas would relish another opportunity with the Ligue 1 leaders after Gianluigi Donnarumma took over as PSG's first-choice keeper.

He told Canal+ "I have one year left on my contract in Paris. If I have to go back there and play, I feel capable of winning the Champions League with PSG.

"I didn't like the situation I was experiencing in Paris. I wanted to feel that the team loved me. I always felt in good condition to play.

"When I was at PSG nobody could say that I was causing problems, that I wasn't training or that I wasn't working well On the contrary, I wanted to train even more and show that I could play. But unfortunately I didn't have the chance."

Navas has no idea where he will be playing next season and is keeping his options open.

He added: "I feel capable of playing for any team. We'll see what happens in the future. I would like, when I finish my loan here, to see the club's intentions. Then we can make decisions."

Pep Guardiola hailed Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne's "special connection" after their eighth Premier League goal combination of the season.

The pair were key once again as City beat lowly Leicester City 3-1 on Saturday.

Haaland scored twice to take his goal tally in the league to 32, matching Mohamed Salah's record for a 38-game season. 

His second goal came when he latched onto a precise De Bruyne throughball, marking the eighth time the Belgium international has teed up a Haaland strike in the top flight this term.

That is one off the joint record of nine, shared by Tottenham duo Harry Kane and Son Heung-min and ex-Liverpool forwards Stan Collymore and Robbie Fowler.

"I think the connection between Erling and Kevin is obvious," Guardiola said. "I think Kevin needs the runners to do his biggest quality.

"Erling needs an assist player to make his positive runs. It's a natural way. We talk a lot about 'take a look at him when he runs and put the ball there'.

"When the ball is correct, and he has this space, he is unstoppable. We know it. But they have a special connection and you can see this.

"But what I like about that second goal is Kevin won the duel. I love that. He won the duel and after that, the run and finish from Erling was fantastic."

De Bruyne's eight assists to Haaland is three more than any other Premier League player has managed to a team-mate this term, with Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes having set up Marcus Rashford on five occasions.

Victory over Leicester, combined with Arsenal's 2-2 draw against West Ham, means City are just four points off the Gunners with a game in hand.

The title rivals will meet on April 26, in what looks set to be the decisive clash.

Gabriel Jesus says Arsenal must raise their levels to remain on top of their Premier League title charge after dropping points for the second game in a row.

The Gunners blew a 2-0 lead against West Ham on Sunday, slipping to a 2-2 draw that has seen their gap at the summit shrink to just four points - the second game in a row a two-goal advantage was let slip.

Jesus and Martin Odegaard had put the visitors in cruise control at London Stadium inside 10 minutes, before Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen clawed back equilibrium.

With Manchester City, who have a game in hand, hot on their heels, Jesus has called upon his team-mates to ensure their standards do not slip again this term.

"Once again, the three points were in our hands," he told the club's website. "Obviously, the game is 90 minutes. It's not 20, [or] in this case 30 minutes.

"As a team, we have to raise the level and come back to our principles. We know our strength, we know what we can do.

"Where we want to attack the opponent, in the first 10 to 20 minutes we did so good. After that we dropped our level and that obviously cannot happen if you want to fight for the title.

"As a team, it's no time to blame [ourselves]. We have to raise the level again, come back to our principles and win the games. That's the only way we can fight for the title again."

Arsenal face City a week on Wednesday at the Etihad Stadium, in what is shaping up to be the pivotal encounter in their title fight.

Before then though, they will hope to return to winning ways against rock-bottom Southampton at the Emirates Stadium on Friday.

Real Madrid are eager to rejuvenate their squad for coming seasons with investment set to come in the off season.

Los Blancos are set to finish second in the LaLiga title race to Barcelona who hold an 11-point lead with nine games to play.

The depth of the reigning European champions, who are in this season's quarter-finals, has been tested at times this term.

TOP STORY – MADRID BOSS TO SWOOP ON CHELSEA TALENT

Fichajes claims Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has identified Chelsea quartet Reece James, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Mason Mount and Mateo Kovacic as potential targets.

The latter three are all out of contract in 2024, meaning Los Blancos could sign them for free if they do not re-sign.

Perez is plotting to capitalise on Chelsea's downfall this term, with the club to miss next season's Champions League.

Kovacic previously spent three seasons at Santiago Bernabeu, while Mount has attracted interest from several top clubs given his quality and contract status.

 

ROUND-UP

Lionel Messi wants to return to Barcelona when his Paris Saint-Germain contract expire at the end of this season, reports Fichajes. Messi will overlook offers from Saudi Arabia and MLS club Inter Miami to return to his former club.

Manchester United are in pole position to sign French defender Axel Disasi from Monaco in the off season, claims Football Insider. Disasi is out of contract in 2025, with Chelsea and Manchester City also said to be interested.

Liverpool have turned to Bayern Munich midfielder Ryan Gravenberch as an alternative to Borussia Dortmund's Jude Bellingham, claims The Times.

– Calciomercatoweb claims Arsenal are still in the race to sign Juventus forward Dusan Vlahovic, despite stiff competition from Madrid and PSG .

Toni Kroos is set to accept a contract extension offer from Madrid and re-commit to the club for another 12 months, reports Marca.

Chelsea have met with ex-Bayern boss Julian Nagelsmann as they look for their next permanent manager, according to The Times.

Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper described the decision not to award his team a penalty against Manchester United as a "really poor error".

United went on to win 2-0 at the City Ground on Sunday thanks to goals from Antony and Diogo Dalot, but not before they had escaped a handball shout with the game still goalless.

A Forest corner in the 19th minute struck the outstretched arm of Harry Maguire – who had already been booked – at the far post, with the hosts immediately appealing to referee Simon Hooper for a penalty.

After consultation with the VAR, Hooper waved away the claims.

"I personally think it's a penalty," Cooper told Sky Sports after the game. "It's a really, really poor error.

"The referee should see it, but I understand why he hasn't because of the angle and the amount of players. But why the VAR hasn't is not right, in my opinion.

"It's another moment that will put big scrutiny on VAR. There's been a lot of negative decisions over the last few weeks, and that's another one.

"I'm not going to stand here and say it's the reason we didn't win the game, although it could be a second yellow and a red for Maguire, and we could have scored the penalty and gone 1-0 up.

"It has a big impact, I'm really biting my tongue because I don't want to use it as an excuse for why we lost the game or why we're in the league position we are in; it's not.

"But it's a bad error. How [VAR] Andy Madley hasn't seen it needs looking at."

The incident came just a week after a number of questionable decisions from officials in Tottenham's 2-1 win over Brighton and Hove Albion, after which refereeing body PGMOL issued an apology to the Seagulls.

Forest remain in the Premier League relegation zone on goal difference behind 17th-placed Everton and have now gone 10 games without a win.

Erik ten Hag had hoped his Manchester United team would kill off Nottingham Forest earlier than they did as they ran out 2-0 victors at the City Ground on Sunday.

Antony put the Red Devils ahead in the first-half, but United struggled to find a way past Keylor Navas again until Diogo Dalot grabbed a second in the 76th minute.

United ended the game with an expected goals rate (xG) of 3.49, and ultimately secured three points to leapfrog Newcastle United into third place in the Premier League.

"A solid performance. A well deserved win. The only criticism I could say, it had to be higher, the score. It had to be 3-0 or 4-0. We missed a lot of chances there," Ten Hag told Sky Sports after the game.

"You want to score and finish and kill the game in the early moments. That's always important. In big games you don't create so many chances, so you have to score them.

"We need more goalscorers and I'm happy with Antony. He scored a goal, gave an assist. His start in the game wasn't that good... But after he came into the game and he was continually a threat for the opponent."

United were without top scorer Marcus Rashford through injury, as well as defensive pair Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez after both suffered knocks in Thursday's 2-2 Europa League quarter-final first leg draw with Sevilla.

 

To add to Ten Hag's issues, Marcel Sabitzer was forced to pull out of the game after being injured in the warm-up on Sunday, and was replaced by Christian Eriksen.

It may have even been a benefit for Ten Hag, with the midfield trio of Casemiro, Eriksen and Bruno Fernandes winning 15 of their 17 matches started together at the club, drawing the other two.

"Sabitzer came off in the warm-up, he felt something. We decided not to take the risk, we will find out tomorrow what it is," the Red Devils' manager explained to BBC Sport. "But when you have Eriksen on the bench, it is definitely not a disadvantage.

"Last week I had nine fit top defenders, now I have four. We need all our players, we are still in three competitions, we need all the players to form a top team."

Dalot celebrated with notable enthusiasm when he made it 2-0 after running onto a pass from Antony and finishing calmly, and he explained to the BBC: "It was a release of emotions, more than the goal it was the moment of the goal, we needed it to be more comfortable.

"One-nil up with 10 minutes to go, it's going to be a war, so it came at the right moment."

Manchester United beat Nottingham Forest 2-0 on Sunday at the City Ground to strengthen their hold on a Champions League qualification spot.

Goals in either half from Antony and Diogo Dalot were enough to take Erik ten Hag's men up to third in the Premier League table, overtaking Newcastle United after their defeat at Aston Villa on Saturday.

Forest – without a win in 10 – remain in the relegation zone, behind Everton on goal difference.

United's injury issues lengthened further after Marcel Sabitzer pulled up with a groin problem in the warm-up, with Christian Eriksen replacing him in the starting line-up, but that did not appear to weaken the Red Devils.

Jadon Sancho had a glorious chance to give the visitors the lead inside the first minute after Keylor Navas palmed a Bruno Fernandes cross straight to him, but the former Borussia Dortmund man could only hit Felipe with his effort.

Harry Maguire was lucky not to concede a penalty when a Forest corner struck the England defender's outstretched arm at the far post, and United took full advantage of that moment of fortune.

Fernandes had been pulling the strings in midfield, and in the 32nd minute, found Anthony Martial with a throughball. The Frenchman's shot was saved by Navas, but Antony followed in for a simple tap in at the back post.

Navas tipped a Fernandes effort from an angle onto the bar early in the second half, while Martial missed a good headed chance with 20 minutes remaining as United looked for a second.

That arrived in the 76th minute as Antony played a neat ball into the path of Dalot, who raced into the penalty area and finished well past Navas as United secured just their second away league win of 2023.

Mikel Arteta rued Arsenal's loss of purpose after they went 2-0 up against West Ham and then blew the chance of victory.

The Hammers hit back to draw 2-2 at London Stadium on Sunday, in a damaging result to Arsenal's title hopes, with Manchester City now just four points behind with a game in hand.

Bukayo Saka's penalty miss early in the second half was compounded by Jarrod Bowen's equaliser two minutes later, as Arsenal surrendered a two-goal lead for the second game running, having previously done so at Liverpool.

Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard put the Gunners 2-0 up inside 10 minutes at West Ham, but Arteta thinks his team grew complacent.

"Very disappointing. The way we started was superb again, we were in total control, then we lost purpose," he told Sky Sports.

"We gave them hope, conceded a terrible penalty, then credit to them. We got on the roller coaster where everything is going, corners and throw-ins, and we never got away from that.

"The purpose we needed for a third and fourth goal, I didn't see it."

Arsenal's lack of focus was exemplified by Thomas Partey's mistake in the build-up to West Ham's first goal, with Declan Rice robbing the midfielder of possession before Lucas Paqueta drew a clumsy challenge from Gabriel Magalhaes.

Saka ultimately missed the chance to restore Arsenal's two-goal advantage when he skewed well wide from the penalty spot following Michail Antonio's handball, but Arteta was philosophical about the youngster's profligacy.

"A player who takes penalties misses penalties, I don't know anyone who hasn't," Arteta said of Saka, before adding Arsenal "can't control" the pressure in the title race.

Captain Odegaard echoed his manager's thoughts, saying: "A lot of the same things to last week – started well, but then we stopped, allowed them to play on their qualities.

"We gave them the game they wanted, we gave them hope, and that's on us. We have to look forward now.

"We started to do a lot of stupid things on the ball, we allowed them to play on the long balls.

 "We have to remember we are still top of the league with everything in our own hands. The same mindset, same mentality to make sure we win the next one."

Arsenal will look to bounce back against Southampton on Friday, before they face City in a potential title decider on April 26.

West Ham, meanwhile, are now four points clear of the bottom three.

"It would have been a good result getting a point anyway, but going 2-0 down and coming back shows great character," Hammers boss David Moyes told BBC Sport.

"The games are coming thick and fast and the players are doing a really good job."

Bukayo Saka's penalty miss proved costly for Arsenal as the Premier League leaders yet again surrendered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with West Ham.

Saka shot wide from 12 yards in the 52nd minute of Sunday's encounter at London Stadium, with Jarrod Bowen swiftly pulling West Ham level.

Mikel Arteta's team – who saw Manchester City defeat Leicester City 3-1 on Saturday – started brilliantly, going 2-0 up inside 10 minutes thanks to Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard.

Yet Said Benrahma's penalty saw the nerves set in, with West Ham taking advantage of Saka's shocker as Arsenal were unable to restore their six-point lead at the top.

Arsenal looked set to canter to victory after a stunning opening 10 minutes.

Jesus tucked in at the back post following slick combination play between Ben White and Odegaard, who made it 2-0 with a cushioned volley from Gabriel Martinelli's exquisite cross.

Yet Thomas Partey gifted West Ham a lifeline when he was robbed by Declan Rice, who fed Lucas Paqueta, with the Brazil international drawing a desperate lunge from compatriot Gabriel Magalhaes.

Having been sent the wrong way by Benrahma's penalty, Ramsdale denied West Ham a quickfire second when he tipped over Michail Antonio's header, with another Partey blunder having handed the Hammers a free-kick.

Antonio's handball from Martinelli's strike seemed destined to signal game over for West Ham, only for Saka to slice the resulting spot-kick well wide.

West Ham made Arsenal pay. Bowen capitalised on slack defending to latch onto Thilo Kehrer's punt, with Ramsdale unable to keep out the winger's volley.

Arsenal were saved by the woodwork late on, Antonio's header striking the crossbar, though the title race momentum nevertheless seems to have swung City's way.

Hugo Lloris has described the boos Davinson Sanchez was subjected to by Tottenham fans during a stunning 3-2 defeat to Bournemouth as "sad for the club".

Sanchez replaced the injured Clement Lenglet 10 minutes before half-time when Spurs were 1-0 up in the Premier League clash at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but his appearance was only brief.

The Colombia international inadvertently provided Dominic Solanke with the opportunity to put the relegation-threatened Cherries 2-1 up after the break, prodding the ball into the striker's path before he beat Lloris.

Centre-back Sanchez was soon back on the bench in the 58th minute after making way for Arnaut Danjuma, who equalised before Dango Ouattara scored a last-gasp winner for Bournemouth.

Sanchez was booed by Tottenham supporters when he was hauled off and captain Lloris was not impressed with the way he was targeted.

The France goalkeeper beIN Sports: "It started earlier. It's when he came on the pitch. I've never seen this in my career.

"I feel really bad for Davinson. He's a team-mate, he's a friend and he's been fighting for the club for many, many years now.

"It's just sad. The story is sad for the club, for the fans, for the player. It's something you don't want to see in football."

Spurs interim boss Cristian Stellini stressed the importance of the club must rallying around Sanchez.

"I understand it's a tough moment for everyone and we have to analyse this moment," he said. "Everyone needs to analyse how important it is to support a player.

"I take the responsibility for the decisions I make. I thought it was too early in the game to use another striker because we were 1-0 up in the first half.

"When we were 2-1 down I thought it was the moment Davinson has to [come off]. It was only a tactical decision. We need to support him because it's a tough moment for him and also for all the team."

Real Madrid are reportedly eager to bolster their full-back options, to upgrade from Dani Carvajal and Ferland Mendy.

Los Blancos were linked with Manchester City's Joao Cancelo - currently on loan at Bayern Munich - earlier this week by Fichajes.

The Spanish giants are set to miss out on this season's LaLiga title, with Barcelona leading by 10 points.

TOP STORY – MADRID KEEN ON LIVERPOOL'S TAA

Real Madrid will turn to Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold should they fail to land Reece James from Chelsea, claims Ekrem Konur.

Los Blancos are in the market for a new full-back and Konur claims Madrid could also turn to Bayer Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong.

Alexander-Arnold has had a mixed campaign for Liverpool, who appear set for a squad revamp in the off-season. The 24-year-old England full-back is contracted with the Reds until 2025.

 

ROUND-UP

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti is an admirer of Torino's 21-year-old midfielder Samuele Ricci with Los Blancos keeping tabs on his situation, according to Tuttosport.

– The Sunday Mirror claims Manchester City are leading the race to sign Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham from Real Madrid , with Liverpool having pulled out.

Chelsea are looking to offer Romelu Lukaku as part of a deal with Atletico Madrid to sign Portuguese forward Joao Felix permanently, reports Fichajes. Chelsea are unwilling to pay Atletico's €100m asking fee, but may part with €70m along with the Belgian forward.

Tottenham are tracking Barcelona winger Ansu Fati, reports Mundo Deportivo. The report suggests Spurs are willing to make him their most expensive transfer in club history.

RB Leipzig are considering a move to sign Arsenal forward Folarin Balogun in the close season, claims Todofichajes. Balogun has impressed this season on loan with Reims .

Chelsea have interviewed Sporting boss Ruben Amorim about taking over as manager next season, reports talkSPORT.

Kevin De Bruyne became the second player to reach 100 Premier League assists for one club as the Manchester City playmaker teed up Erling Haaland for the hosts' third goal in a 3-1 win over Leicester City.

The result cut Arsenal's lead to three points at the top of the table, ahead of the Gunners' trip to West Ham on Sunday.

Saturday's games saw Ollie Watkins remain in eye-catching form for Aston Villa, but there were grim home defeats for London giants Chelsea and Tottenham as Brighton and Hove Albion and Bournemouth celebrated impressive victories.

Here Stats Perform, guided by notable Opta match facts, unpicks the finer detail from the day's Premier League action.

Manchester City 3-1 Leicester City: Haaland and De Bruyne star as City keep pressure on

Armed with a 3-0 lead after 25 minutes, Manchester City took their foot off the pedal and Leicester gained a foothold, but the Foxes rarely get much from this fixture. It is 11 wins in their last 13 league games against Leicester now for Pep Guardiola's team, and five wins from as many meetings.

City are on a 10-match winning streak across all competitions, which they have bettered only twice during the Guardiola era, having a run of 21 wins from December 2020 to March 2021, and an 11-game run from August to October in 2017.

Haaland scored twice to take his goals tally to 32 in the top flight, ever closer to the Premier League record of 34 in a single campaign, while De Bruyne's pass that set up the Norway striker's second meant he completed 100 assists for City. Ryan Giggs, with 162 for Manchester United, is the only other player to reach a century of assists for one club in the Premier League.

De Bruyne has now assisted 10 goals for Haaland across all competitions this season, and that is the most assists any one player has had for the young goal machine with a top-flight club, beating Jadon Sancho's nine when he and Haaland were team-mates at Borussia Dortmund in the 2020-21 campaign.

Leicester remain deep in relegation trouble, with the 2015-16 Premier League champions having taken just eight points from 16 games in the competition (W2 D2 L12), losing eight of their past nine.

 

Aston Villa 3-0 Newcastle United: Watkins and Villa hit half-century marks as Emery revival gathers pace

Aston Villa were hovering precariously closely to the relegation zone when Steven Gerrard was sacked in October. A sensational recovery continued as they steamrollered third-placed Newcastle on Saturday, with their winning run in the Premier League now at five games.

They last reached five wins in a row in the competition on this corresponding weekend 25 years ago, when John Gregory was boss, and Saturday's result means Newcastle's Eddie Howe has lost his last four league clashes with Villa manager Unai Emery, who was previously in charge of Arsenal, by an 11-2 aggregate.

Villa have reached 50 points from 31 games, the earliest they have achieved that tally since they got there in 29 matches in 2009-10, and Watkins has been a key figure in the team's resurgence.

The England striker added to Jacob Ramsey's opener, which came from Watkins' headed assist, by netting a second-half double to take the game away from the Magpies.

Watkins' 50th, 51st and 52nd goal involvements for Villa (39 goals and 13 assists) came in his 102nd Premier League game for the team, with only Christian Benteke (88 games) having reached 50 in fewer games in the competition for the club. Watkins has 12 goals and three assists on Premier League duty since the World Cup, with only Haaland (16) having more goal involvements during this time.

Chelsea 1-2 Brighton and Hove Albion: Seagulls swoop for Stamford Bridge scalp

Brighton substitutes Danny Welbeck and Julio Enciso did the damage, and Chelsea could have no complaints. In terms of expected goals (xG), Brighton bossed this, ending with 2.28 compared to the hosts' 0.60.

After failing to win against Chelsea in 14 Premier League matches, Brighton have done the double this season, having won 4-1 at home in October.

Chelsea's winless run at home in the league now stands at four matches (D2 L2), and that is their worst streak since taking just one point from their final five games at Stamford Bridge in the 2015-16 season.

Only Manchester United (10) have had more goals from substitutes than Brighton (8) in the Premier League this season, and those two sides meet next weekend in the semi-final stage of the FA Cup.

Tottenham 2-3 Bournemouth: Echoes of Balotelli as Outtara stuns Spurs

Tottenham have Aston Villa and Brighton in hot pursuit after this shock reverse, with Dango Ouattara getting Bournemouth's winner four minutes and 11 seconds into stoppage time.

It was the latest winning goal Bournemouth have ever scored in the Premier League, as well as being the second-latest winning goal scored against Spurs by any team on record since 2006-07, after Mario Balotelli's strike for Manchester City in January 2012, which came after four minutes and 39 seconds of added time.

This was Bournemouth's first away league win against Tottenham, after losing on all five previous attempts, and it marked the first time Spurs have lost at home when taking the lead since a 3-2 setback against Southampton in February of last year.

Bournemouth have won five of their last nine Premier League games and have remarkably leapt six points clear of the bottom three, having won just five of their previous 25 matches. Dominic Solanke scored the Cherries' second and provided assists for their two other goals, scoring and assisting in the same Premier League game for the third time this season, with no player having done so on more occasions.

Pep Guardiola acknowledged his substitutions made for a nervous finish after seeing his Manchester City side ease up in a 3-1 win over Leicester City at the Etihad Stadium.

City closed the gap on Premier League leaders Arsenal to three points as Erling Haaland struck twice in the first 25 minutes, after John Stones' fine volley had given the hosts an early lead.

With City cruising against their out-of-form opponents, Guardiola withdrew both goalscorers at the break, with Kevin De Bruyne, Rodri and Jack Grealish following after the interval.

Leicester then threatened an unlikely fightback after Kelechi Iheanacho tapped in for 3-1, with the Nigerian hitting the post late on and James Maddison missing a fine chance.

Asked if Leicester's late onslaught had caused any nerves, Guardiola told Sky Sports: "Of course we were worried. 

"It was 3-1 from our mistake and they had the chances with Maddison and Kelechi, so the game was tricky in the last 15 minutes. The first 60 or 65 minutes was good.

"I'd like us to push ourselves better and avoid what happened after 3-0, so we do not suffer, but it happened because of the substitutions. From my experience, when you do that, this happens."  

City have won nine successive games as they chase silverware on three fronts, and Guardiola says alterations were necessary in order to preserve his stars' fitness.

"We started really well, with incredible focus, but at the end when you make a lot of substitutions at the same time, you always drop a little bit," he said.

"If the guys from the second half started, it would be the same approach that we had in the beginning. It's just a fact that playing every three days, we have to make a lot of rotations.

"I made just two [changes] in the beginning. When the game was under control, I made the rest."

City turn their attentions to the Champions League on Wednesday, looking to defend a 3-0 first-leg lead when they visit Bayern Munich in an attempt to reach the semi-finals.

Asked by BBC Sport if Bayern had a chance of overturning City's advantage, Guardiola said: "Absolutely, we know that. We have to try our game and think we will win the game. 

"We have to defend otherwise they have the rhythm. It's a real tough opponent. We go there to achieve something unique, to reach a semi-final.

"We have to play with the right mentality, be stable in the bad moments and go for it."

Erling Haaland matched Mohamed Salah's scoring record in a 38-game Premier League season as Manchester City swatted aside lowly Leicester City 3-1.

Free-scoring City had the game won by the 25th minute at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, with Haaland scoring twice after John Stones' stunning opener.

Subbed off at half-time, Haaland has now netted 32 league goals this season, matching Salah's haul from the 2017-18 campaign. 

Sloppy defending allowed Kelechi Iheanacho to grab a consolation for Leicester in Dean Smith's first match in charge, with the former City striker hitting the post in stoppage time as the hosts rather staggered over the line to reduce Arsenal's lead to three points.

City enjoyed 93 per cent possession in the opening five minutes and were rewarded when Stones arched a brilliant left-footed strike into the right-hand corner.

Leicester's slim chances of snatching a much-needed shock victory were further dented when Wilfred Ndidi was deemed to have handled from Jack Grealish's cross.

Haaland slammed away the resulting penalty, and had his second 12 minutes later, brilliantly collecting in Kevin De Bruyne's throughball and lifting a cute finish over Daniel Iversen.

With an eye on the midweek trip to Bayern Munich, Pep Guardiola took the chance to rest both of his goalscorers at half-time.

Rodri joined Stones and Haaland in earning a rest shortly after, with Kalvin Phillips handed a rare league appearance, although City's composure turned to complacency when Iheanacho tapped in after Harry Souttar's header was saved by Ederson.

James Maddison missed a golden chance to set up a grandstand finish when he failed to beat Ederson, before Iheanacho struck the woodwork between two hopeful penalty appeals, albeit Leicester's resurgence was too little, too late.

What does it mean? Almost too easy for City

Guardiola will not have been happy with his side’s display in the second half, albeit the stuttering nature of their performance can in large part be put down to the amount of changes made.

The first half was a different matter altogether. City purred, having eight shots, scoring with all three they got on target and registering 1.9 expected goals to Leicester's 0.22.

Leicester's new interim boss Smith, meanwhile, will target matches elsewhere as he looks to drag the Foxes out of danger, though his team had their chances to make a fight of it late on.

Another record tumbles

Haaland's goal tally for the season now stands at 47. The British single-season record stands at 63, scored by Everton legend Dixie Dean back in the 1920s, and you would not bet against the 22-year-old surpassing it.

His next top-flight goal will see him set a record for the most scored in a 38-game Premier League campaign, while he is only two short of the outright competition record, which is shared by Alan Shearer and Andrew Cole.

Ton up for De Bruyne

De Bruyne was the creator of Haaland's second goal, nipping in ahead of the lacklustre Ndidi to steal the ball in midfield before playing a perfect pass through to City's superstar striker.

It brought up De Bruyne's 100th Premier League assist for City, while it was the eighth time the Belgium international has teed up Haaland in the competition.

What's next?

City travel to Bavaria for that game against Bayern, while Leicester face Wolves next Saturday.

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