Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola acknowledged that the Premier League title race is no longer in his team’s control after a chaotic 3-3 draw with Everton on Monday.
“It is not in our hands now. Before it was, now it is not,” Guardiola said.
“We have four games left in the Premier League. They will all be quite similar, and we will see what happens.”
City had the opportunity to move level on points with leaders Arsenal but missed that chance with the draw at Everton and ahead of their meeting with Brentford five days later.
Instead, they find themselves five points adrift, albeit with a game in hand, and needing a slip from Arsenal.
Guardiola was left to reflect on a point salvaged rather than three secured at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
“It is better than losing,” he said. “We would rather win. We play for that, and we just showed what a team we are. We tried everything. The players were aggressive.”
Winger Jeremy Doku struck a dramatic equaliser in the 97th minute to complete a double on the night and echoed his manager’s frustration while insisting City have not abandoned belief with four league games still to play.
“It is painful now, but there are still a lot of games to go and anything can happen,” Doku said. “We will keep on fighting. We owe it to ourselves and our fans.”
City striker Erling Haaland, who scored in the 83rd minute, could be heard saying “We are still in it” as he shook hands with teammates after the final whistle.
Following Saturday’s game against Brentford, City face Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Aston Villa in their final three league games.
Arsenal have a more favorable schedule on paper, with games against relegation-threatened West Ham United, already-relegated Burnley and Palace.
While their hopes of winning the league suffered a significant blow on Monday, City are still technically in the running for a domestic treble. They beat Arsenal to win the League Cup in March and meet Chelsea in the FA Cup final on May 16.
