Josko Gvardiol adoration, Erling Haaland’s penalty secret, Arsenal warning – Every Word in part two of Pep Guardiola’s Wolves Review | OneFootball

Manchester City moved to within just three wins of a fourth successive Premier League title as they dismissed of Wolves at the Etihad Stadium with ease.

A first-half Erling Haaland hat-trick set Manchester City on their way to three points by the half-time interval, with two penalties from the Norwegian and an unstoppable headed goal putting the end result of the contest beyond any doubt.

The second-half would follow suit, with Hwang Hee-chan giving the visitors something to cheer about, only for Erling Haaland to add to his own personal scoring and make way for Julian Alvarez to make it five in the closing exchanges.

That result now means that victories over Fulham and Tottenham away from home in the coming days would move Manchester City to within one final win over West Ham at the Etihad Stadium on the final day from a Premier League title success.

Speaking during part two of his post-Wolves review on Saturday evening, Pep Guardiola discussed a wide range of subject matter including the remarkable rise and development of Josko Gvardiol, as well as the importance of playing before Arsenal next weekend.

Here is every single word from the embargoed section of the Manchester City manager’s post-match address with the media following a 5-1 win over Wolves at the Etihad Stadium!

On Arsenal finding it perhaps demoralising to win and then find Manchester City 3-0 up at half-time

“I don’t know, I’m not in the mind of the Arsenal fans. They do what they have to do, win the games. The only situation we have is… I’m not saying Fulham, always it’s been really tough for us, and Spurs except in the FA Cup we’ve never won before in the Premier League (at the new stadium).

“I don’t considerate the fact that we are the situation that we are will be easy, but of course in one week having three games and the important thing is that it’s in our hands. If we win the games, we will be Champions.

“The players know it, feel it, experienced in the past, and they have to do it again, and again, and again. It’s going to be easy? No. But, it’s in our hands. So that’s all.”

On 24 goals in the last six Premier League games; simple as key players coming back from injury, or what has clicked in the last two months

“I think always we’ve scored goals. We had important players injured, now we are everybody fit. Look at the last minutes from Jeremy (Doku), how incredible he was. So we need everyone, and the players know it.

“Now we have a long week, a couple of days off, rest, and go to 12:30, Fulham, Saturday, and after Fulham, Tuesday, and hopefully we can arrive here in the press conference for West Ham with a chance that it’s in our hands.”

On whether Erling Haaland’s penalty success is a mental/technique thing

“No… To have mental strength is a skill as well. And the people say, ‘Oh, the penalty shooting is lucky’, no it’s not lucky. If you are a good taker, you have a better chance. You have a good keeper, you have a better chance.

“And Erling (Haaland) is a… of course, he’s going to miss penalties, but everybody knows it’s a guarantee, he’s a good taker, speed, and, ‘I’m going to take a penalty, I’m going to score’. Confidence. That’s right.”

On Josko Gvardiol

“I would say it’s been more than weeks (that he has been excellent). I would say it’s months already. There was a period that was so uncertain, it was not really, really good. I said before, but it’s normal in the first season, Premier League, the demanding, challenges, skills, and strengths.

“But we talked, we saw many of his performances, and he got it. He can play central defender, can play left, he’s just 22-years-old, he’s an unbelievably lovely guy, he’s beloved like you cannot imagine for his humility and we are really, really pleased.”

On the significance of winning before Arsenal on Saturday

“If we played Fulham after, we have to win! And Arsenal knows they have to win! And not just those 11 players, the staff, backroom staff, all the fans, everyone knows that it’s not one little mistake. Because you will lose the Premier League. We know it, but they know it.

“What happened in Liverpool in the past. Play before? Today (vs Wolves) we arrived here, and the players know, ‘Guys, if we don’t win, Ciao Ciao, bye bye, next season see each other’. It’s not much complicated, it doesn’t matter if you play before or later.

“So just in case, hopefully, we win against Fulham, they will play in Old Trafford, that of course they play for Europa League, but they’ll say, ‘If we don’t win today, we will not be Champions’. And when that happens, it’s more different in terms of it’s easier, because you see the level of consistency of Arsenal since the winter break, the way they’re playing, it’s just winning.

“The way they’re playing, you smell, they’re not going to lose the two games left that they have. They are not going to lose. (Do you expect Arsenal to beat Manchester United?) It’s a question for (Erik) ten Hag and Mikel (Arteta), not for me.”