'Could not care less!' - Pep Guardiola reacts to talk of Arsenal throwing away Premier League title as Man City look to cash in on Gunners' latest bottle job at Wolves

Pep Guardiola Mikel Arteta Arsenal Man City

Pep Guardiola has insisted he has not discussed the state of the Premier League title race with his Manchester City players even after Arsenal dropped points in their last two games. The Gunners' late collapse at Wolves on Wednesday means that if City win all their remaining matches, including an April showdown against Arsenal, the title will be theirs.

Arsenal collapse puts ball in City's court

Arsenal were nine points ahead of City just two weeks ago, albeit with a game in hand. The gap has now been cut down to five after Guardiola's side staged their dramatic win over Liverpool and beat Fulham comfortably, while the Gunners drew at Brentford and Wolves.  with City having an extra game. If Guardiola's men beat Newcastle on Saturday they will chop the deficit down to two points and putting huge pressure on Arsenal ahead of their visit to fierce local rivals Tottenham, who will be playing their first game under new coach Igor Tudor. Despite City being in a favourable position, Guardiola is not interested in discussing the status of the title race with the media or with his players.

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Guardiola not thinking 'one second' about league table

Guardiola told a press conference on Friday: "12 games is a lot. Newcastle is all I am concerned with. I'm not concerned with the League Cup final with Arsenal until it comes. Now it's Newcastle, rest and after Leeds. I don't know what is going to happen these next 12 games. I didn't speak one second about that with my players. 

"Yesterday and the day before it was Newcastle, Newcastle, Newcastle. I didn't talk about the position or the table. I could not care less. It's 12 games. Ask me this question with two or three games and I will answer but 12 games left is an eternity. That is the only truth I have.

"They were nine points [in front] because we had a game in hand. When everybody has the same fixtures, and after we have the differences. Many things are going to happen until the end of the season. 70 per cent of the players are new so they don't have that experience of these kind of situations. Experience is win tomorrow."

Guardiola praises Semenyo impact

Antoine Semenyo has made a flying start to life with City since his £64m move from Bournemouth in January, scoring five goals and getting two assists. Guardiola praised the forward's impact. "He scored a lot of goals but it's not just that - he has a special rhythm and versatility to play in three positions," he explained. 

"He came from Bournemouth with incredible rhythm defensively. His impact has been really good. We played against Antoine many times. When he became top class or elite, we have to see. He is playing Champions League that he has never played before, the knockout position it's a good test for him but I'm pretty sure with his mentality he will handle it quite well. Normally the guys who come adapt really quick because the guys who have been here for a long time make it no problem."

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Savinho returns but Doku still out

Guardiola confirmed that Savinho is fit to face Newcastle, which could be his first appearance since suffering an injury in the 0-0 draw at Sunderland on January 1. However, Jeremy Doku will not be available as he continues his recovery from a knee injury. While Newcastle are likely to be feeling the effects of their emphatic 6-1 win at Qarabag in the Champions League on Wednesday, City should be refreshed after having a week's rest between their FA Cup win over Salford and the game against Eddie Howe's side. 

The coach added: "The important [thing] is that players are revitalised after a lot of months with a few days off. I don't have to run one metre so for me it's not a problem. It's the players and for the players it's really good to have long weeks to rest and they trained good the last two days."

History favours City in this fixture as Newcastle have never won at the Etihad Stadium. Their last victory away to City came at the old Maine Road stadium under Bobby Robson, who coached Guardiola in the one season he had in charge of Barcelona.