Guardiola reveals strong competition is crucial for Man City to be successful this season | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola believes competitions for places is crucial to his side as Manchester City go in search of silverware success this season.

City have enjoyed a strong run of form in recent weeks and head into this weekend’s clash with Crystal Palace having won seven consecutive fixtures in all competitions, Guardiola’s side currently sitting third in the Premier League.

The Spaniard has regularly rotated his options this season and has been discussing the importance of fierce internal competition within his squad, admitting that no player is guaranteed of their place in his best XI this season.

“Every player has competition with his team-mates. Even the manager, if we’re not playing good I have competition,” said Guardiola at his pre-match press conference.

“To get the best out of ourselves, we have to feel our seat is not safe.

“The players know what we have done in the past does not count. Crystal Palace counts.”

Guardiola also spoke on this weekend’s opponents and is expecting a difficult encounter against Palace, the Eagles having taken four points from their past two Premier League visits to the Etihad.

The City boss praised the defensive performance of Roy Hodgson’s side following their goalless draw with Arsenal on Thursday night and suggested he is anticipating a difficult clash on Sunday evening.

“The reality is that every game is so difficult. I can speak personally about my team, but you see it for all the other top teams. Every game is so difficult. When you win away at Chelsea and United the headlines are so nice, but the reality is Brighton.

“A team like Palace knows exactly what they have to do. We have to be patient, find our rhythm. They defend so well. We saw that against Arsenal. They were able to control much of the game. It was tough in recent seasons when we lost and drew.”

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