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• Pep Guardiola knows Man City fans will be behind team if ‘bad moments’ arrive

  Pep Guardiola has no doubt Manchester City’s fans will be there to lift the team if they ever hit a poor run.

  City supporters have seen little but success during Guardiola’s reign as manager, winning five Premier League titles and a glorious treble last season.

  Yet Guardiola recognises that run may one day come to an end and it is then the City manager hopes the fans, so used to being entertained, will be able to inspire them.

  The Spaniard said: “We want the fans to enjoy and have fun, have one hour and 30 minutes in good moments. That depends on us. When we play good, always they are there.

  “It’s just sometimes the situation is not going well. In that moment it’s not because the players don’t want it – because they’ve proved over how many years their consistency – but it is in that moment we need them.

  “Of course we won a lot and, in the future, maybe you have to understand in the mind that this is an exception. It’s not normal to win the treble, it’s not normal to win five Premier Leagues in six years.

  “You have to understand that – OK, continue to enjoy – but if the bad moments are coming this season and the next one and the next one, you have to be there.

  “And I’m pretty sure they’ll be there because it’s a club that has come from Maine Road and from being in mid-table, not fighting for the titles. They were there all the time.

  “I was not here but the people talk to me. So if it’s coming back down a little, ‘Come on, let’s go.’ Do what you have to do to come back there on top of the league and don’t be down for a long time.”

  Guardiola, however, is confident the current crop of players would not allow a slump to occur.

  He said: “The players are the most important thing, and I know they know it, otherwise what we have done cannot be possible.

  “The players always are there, even losing 0-2, still we run, still we fight.”

  Guardiola’s own powers of motivation are well known, although he has downplayed the significance of his sharp comments after last season’s home clash against Tottenham as he prepares to host the same opponents on Sunday.

  City suffered a dip in form in the early part of 2023 and needed to come from 2-0 down against Spurs to avoid a third successive loss.

  Afterwards, Guardiola labelled his side the “Happy Flowers” team, essentially accusing them of lacking concentration.

  Observers later cited it as a turning point in their treble-winning campaign.

  But Guardiola said: “That was my feeling in that moment. I had to say something. Because we won we can believe it (worked) but it is not the truth. Because we won (people say), ‘How brilliant was Pep?’ but we could do it again and it might not work.”

• Real Madrid keep run going as Rodrygo hits the target again

  Rodrygo continued his red-hot form as Real Madrid returned to the top of LaLiga following a routine 2-0 win over struggling Granada.

  The Brazil forward rifled home his seventh goal in his last five Real appearances to seal victory at Santiago Bernabeu following Brahim Diaz’s first-half opener.

  Carlo Ancelotti’s men kicked off on Saturday evening having slipped to second in the table due to Girona’s 2-1 success over Valencia earlier in the day.

  Yet they swiftly regained first place, above the Catalan club on head-to-head-results, following a straightforward success over the division’s second-bottom side.

  England midfielder Jude Bellingham once again impressed but was unable to add to his 15 goals this season and picked up a first-half yellow card for dissent.

  Victory for the hosts stretched their unbeaten streak in all competitions to 13 matches, dating back to the 3-1 derby defeat at Atletico Madrid in September.

  Real were back in domestic action after maintaining their 100 per cent Champions League record with Wednesday’s 4-2 success over Serie A champions Napoli.

  Their early dominance was rewarded with a 26th-minute lead.

  Toni Kroos split the visitors’ defence with a fine first-time pass, allowing former Manchester City man Diaz to claim his third goal of the season by calmly lifting the ball over Granada’s substitute goalkeeper Andre Ferreira.

  Bellingham wanted a penalty in the final minute of the half when he went down under a robust lunging challenge from Ignasi Miquel but his animated appeals were waved away by the referee.

  Real initially looked content with their slender advantage during a fairly subdued start to the second period.

  However, their slow, patient play was rewarded with a second goal in the 57th minute.

  Bellingham looked certain to score following a cut back from the lively Diaz but Ferreira, who replaced the injured Raul Fernandez after 10 minutes, pulled off an impressive save, only to see the in-form Rodrygo emphatically lash home the rebound.

  Granada’s sole success this season came at home to Mallorca back in August.

  The away side never looked likely to set up a grandstand finish and did not manage an attempt on target as the hosts continued to monopolise the ball.

  Federico Valverde went close to adding to Real’s advantage but he was denied by a superb one-handed save from Ferreira following a delightful pass from Bellingham.

• Dwight McNeil fires Everton to morale-boosting win at Nottingham Forest

  Dwight McNeil’s second-half goal clinched Everton a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest and lifted them off the foot of the Premier League table.

  Everton had slipped to the bottom before the late kick-off at the City Ground after Burnley’s win against relegation rivals Sheffield United.

  But McNeil lashed home the only goal to clinch Everton a morale-boosting victory one day after the club lodged their appeal against their 10-point deduction for breaching the Premier League’s financial rules.

  Everton, who have not lost at the City Ground since 1995, notched their third win in five league matches to climb to within two points of safety while Forest slipped to a third straight defeat and back-to-back home losses.

  Wayward finishing and heroic defending ensured a goalless first half as both sides spurned scoring chances.

  Everton should have broken the deadlock in the 23rd minute, with Beto blazing over an empty net when he looked odds-on to register his first Premier League goal.

  Forest goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos dropped a cross after tangling with team-mate Willy Boly but Beto, back in the starting line-up for the first time since September in place of the injured Dominic Calvert-Lewin, fired off target.

  Forest had made the better start but came under siege for a prolonged spell in the first period and were also indebted to Murillo. The Brazilian defender cleared McNeil’s angled shot off the goal line and needed treatment after falling awkwardly into the net.

  Anthony Elanga had earlier pulled a low shot wide for Forest, who could have snatched the lead in first-half stoppage time through Morgan Gibbs-White but he fired into the side netting after being played in by Ibrahim Sangare.

  Forest made a fast start to the second half, with substitute Felipe soon in the thick of the action.

  His shot following a goalmouth scramble clipped a post and moments later the Brazilian was booked for hauling down McNeil outside his own area.

  Ryan Yates had gone to ground under Doucoure’s challenge following the corner which had led to Felipe’s effort, but Forest’s penalty appeals were waved away and they fell behind soon after.

  Jack Harrison’s cross from the right picked out McNeil at the far post and he took one touch before rifling his first goal of the season into the far corner.

  McNeil raced in on goal shortly after but was thwarted by Serge Aurier’s last-ditch tackle and Forest went close to an equaliser when Elanga rounded Jordan Pickford only to shoot into the side netting from a tight angle.

  Pickford rescued Everton in the 81st minute when racing out of his goal to deny Elanga and saved well again from Murillo’s fierce effort.

  Forest poured forward in search of a late equaliser but Elanga’s shot curled inches wide and at the final whistle soon after, Everton’s travelling fans burst into a chorus of We Shall Not Be Moved.