Pep Guardiola has conceded that Manchester City no longer control their own destiny in the Premier League title race after a dramatic 3-3 draw with Everton on Monday night. The result leaves City five points behind leaders Arsenal, with only one game in hand remaining.
City entered the match at Goodison Park trailing Arsenal by six points but with two games in hand. However, after falling behind early, they fought back to lead 2-1 before Everton scored three times in 13 second-half minutes to secure a point. Jeremy Doku's late equaliser salvaged a draw for the visitors.
Speaking after the match, Guardiola acknowledged the setback. 'It's not in our hands. Before it was in our hands. Now, no,' he told Sky Sports. 'We have to do it in our four games that we have in the Premier League. It will be quite similar against Brentford. We will see what happens.'
Doku, who scored twice including the equaliser, expressed frustration. 'It feels painful now. There is still a lot of games to go. We lost two points today. We will keep on fighting - we owe it to ourselves and to our fans.'
Guardiola praised Everton's resilience, noting the difficulty of playing at Goodison Park. 'Everton away is always difficult and I give credit to them for their composure and aggression. Second half, they made a step up. We didn't have as much control and we gave away the goal.'
