Pep Guardiola expects Manchester City and Liverpool to continue pushing each other for years to come as he compared their rivalry to that of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
City and Liverpool have lifted the Premier League title between them in each of the past four seasons and one of the two will be crowned champions this campaign, having once again proved far too strong for the chasing pack.
Liverpool trailed City by 14 points in January, albeit with two games in hand, and have since bridged the gap to just one point ahead of Sunday's huge showdown at the Etihad Stadium.
Should the Reds go on and win the title this term, it would mark the greatest comeback in terms of points in the competition's history, breaking the 1997-98 record of 13 points Arsenal made up to pip Manchester United to top spot.
City and Liverpool have showed remarkable consistency over the past five seasons to continually push each other for not just domestic but also European honours, something Guardiola believes could remain the case long after he has departed the club.
"We're five years into our rivalry – look at Nadal, Federer and Djokovic and that lasted 20 years," Guardiola said at Friday's pre-match news conference.
"To maintain success in football is more difficult than other sports. But when I'm playing golf once I've retired, I'll remember during my time here the biggest rivalry was with Liverpool.
"When you achieve 100 points, 98 points, you need someone to push from behind to be so close. You have to make another step. I think, knowing our club and chairman, we was to continue to grow. I'm sure Liverpool will also try to do it.
"The most credit I can give is consistency through the years. That's why Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have been on top for so long. We have to try to continue arriving at this stage with the aim of winning titles."
Guardiola added: "Real Madrid made Barcelona better. Here, [Manchester] United and Chelsea change their managers but at Liverpool, Jurgen has always been here. How consistent both clubs have been to improve what they need. It's obvious to say we grew up from day one."
Guardiola has lost more matches in all competitions against Liverpool counterpart Jurgen Klopp than versus any other manager (eight), while the latter has only lost as many matches against Felix Magath (eight) in his managerial career as he has against Guardiola.
Klopp described Guardiola as the best manager in the world in his pre-match news conference earlier on Friday, words of respect in which the Catalan was keen to repay two days out from their latest meeting.
"Jurgen makes world football a better place to live. I try to have a good relationship with all the managers. Jurgen knows me. We also spoke together in Germany. He's a good guy and I don't have any problems with him.
"But I didn't become a manager to be the best. I'm not. Thank you so much for those comments, but I'm not [the best]. I'd like to say I am, but I'm not."
Sunday's meeting will be the 50th time in Premier League history that the top two sides have faced off, with the league leaders winning 20 and losing 18, the other 11 finishing all square.
It is the third such match between City and Liverpool, following a goalless draw in October 2018 and a 4-0 win for the Citizens against newly-crowned champions Liverpool in July 2020.
While the match is being billed as one of the biggest in English top-flight history, however, Guardiola is not pleased with the timing of the fixture as it clashes with the final day of The Masters at Augusta National.
"I will sleep like a baby before the game," Guardiola said when asked if he is feeling nervous. "But I'm upset with the Premier League because they put the game when Tiger Woods is back!
"It will be a massively important three points, of course, but there will be seven more games to play, another 21 points, plus other competitions."
Rybakina eases past Sherif to reach Madrid Open last 16
Elena Rybakina cruised past Mayar Sherif in straight sets to reach the last 16 of the Madrid Open on Sunday.
World number four Rybakina rarely looked like being troubled by Sherif, easing to a 6-1 6-4 triumph, winning 22 of her 26 first-serve points on her way to victory.
The 2022 Wimbledon champion broke Sherif's serve twice in the first set to gain control of the match, before holding her serve five times in the second to ensure victory.
Also into the last 16 in Madrid are Yulia Putintseva and Daria Kasatkina, who beat Caroline Dolehide and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova respectively, both in straight sets. However, world number seven and reigning Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova is out after she was upset by Mirra Andreeva, losing 7-5 6-1.
Data debrief
In reaching the Madrid Open last 16, Rybakina again showed her class on clay. Her victory over Sherif saw her become only the fourth player in the last 10 years to win 14 straight WTA matches on clay, alongside Serena Williams, Simona Halep and Iga Swiatek.
Additionally, Rybakina's 475 winners at WTA-1000 events in 2024 are 112 more than the next best, Danielle Collins with 363.
'We fought until the end' - Saka 'delighted' as Arsenal withstand late Spurs surge
Bukayo Saka saluted Arsenal's fighting spirit as they withstood a late Tottenham revival to claim all three points in the north London derby.
Mikel Arteta's side prevailed 3-2 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to extend their lead at the Premier League summit to four points over second-place Manchester City with three matches remaining, though the Citizens still have two games in hand.
The Gunners surged into a 3-0 lead before half-time with Saka and Kai Havertz on target after Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's own-goal broke the deadlock.
The winger's 15th goal of the season - his highest tally during a single term - saw him become the first English player to score home and away for Arsenal against Tottenham in the same Premier League campaign since Ian Wright in 1993-94.
However, the visitors given a late scare with Cristian Romero pouncing on David Raya's error to pull a goal back, before Heung-Min Son's 87th-minute penalty set up a grandstand finish.
Nevertheless, they held on for three points and, though the destiny of the title is out of their hands, their challenge remains very much alive.
"The last 20 minutes weren't nice, but it was worth it," Saka told Sky Sports.
"We know it's a big derby, and they don't want to lose 3-0 at home. Once they got one goal, the crowd were up and the momentum shifted their way. But I'm proud of the boys. We fought until the end, and got the three points.
"We showed our level heads at the end, and I'm proud to get the win. We know what it means to the fans and to us, so we're delighted.
"This is a massive win for us. We've got three [matches] to go, we're going to give it everything. City are an amazing team, but they're not perfect - nobody's perfect, they can drop points. We just need to do our job and see where it leads us."
Tottenham 2-3 Arsenal: Gunners hold off late fightback to boost title hopes
Arsenal survived a late scare to move four points clear at the Premier League summit following a 3-2 win at rivals Tottenham in Sunday's north London derby.
The Gunners cruised into a 3-0 half-time lead thanks to an own goal from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg along with Bukayo Saka's strike and Kai Havertz's header.
Yet a second-half collapse looked to be on the cards when Cristian Romero punished David Raya’s error before Son Heung-min pulled another back from the spot. However, the Gunners ultimately held on.
Arsenal, at least temporarily, tightened their grip on top spot ahead of second-placed Manchester City, who play the first of their two games in hand against Nottingham Forest later on Sunday, while Tottenham remain seven points off the top four in fifth.
The Gunners broke through after 15 minutes when Hojbjerg inadvertently nodded Saka’s inswinging corner beyond Guglielmo Vicario at his near post.
Spurs responded, and after Romero headed against the post, Micky van de Ven thought he had levelled when he slotted home from close range. However, the decision to award the goal was overturned following a VAR review with the defender adjudged to be offside.
Arsenal doubled their lead in the 27th minute following a swift counter that saw Havertz pick out Saka, who cut inside before slotting past Vicario.
Havertz then got in on the act before half-time, heading home Declan Rice’s corner from inside the six-yard box.
Yet an error by Raya gifted Spurs a lifeline after the break, when Romero pounced on the goalkeeper’s poor clearance to reduce the hosts’ arrears.
Matters were made more fraught for the Gunners late on, when a VAR check confirmed a penalty should be awarded to Spurs for Rice’s foul on Ben Davies.
Son lashed a brilliant spot-kick into the left-hand corner, yet a late Spurs onslaught ultimately came to nothing, as the Gunners secured another big win.
Saka shines in the derby limelight
The destiny of the Premier League title may be in Man City’s hands, but Arsenal are still very much in the hunt after a second London derby victory this week.
Mikel Arteta’s side, who thumped Chelsea 5-0 on Tuesday, have bounced back brilliantly from their defeat to Aston Villa two weeks ago, scoring 10 goals in three games while conceding just twice.
After his corner led to the opening goal, Saka doubled the lead with his 15th league strike of this term – his most in a single season – while he became the first English player to score home and away for Arsenal against Tottenham in a single campaign since Ian Wright 30 years ago (1993-94).
The damage was effectively done when Havertz headed in the Gunners’ 16th goal from a corner this season, the most in a single campaign since West Bromwich Albion in 2016-17 (also 16), though Arteta will have been concerned by their near slip at the end.
Spurs' struggles on home soil continue
The 195th north London derby culminated in Tottenham losing successive home league games against Arsenal for the first time since 1988.
Despite their best efforts in the second half, it was always going to be difficult to turn things around against the side that has now won all 16 matches when leading at half-time this season.
Now without a win in four meetings against their rivals, they have also tasted success just once in five home outings against the Gunners.
With their own title hopes undented by their rivals, Arsenal will hope Tottenham can instead harm City’s chances when they host them on May 14.
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