Manchester City are intent on making their title defence a procession. Their lead is now 12 points and though Liverpool can cut it back to nine with a game in hand by beating Leicester on Thursday, Pep Guardiola’s team have a relentlessness that may propel them far into the distance.
The manager often speaks of the significance of how his side “arrive” in February, when the business phase of the campaign begins. On this evidence City are hitting their best rhythms with the spring months beckoning: precisely as he wishes.
