Pep Guardiola insisted he does not “care” if Manchester City win this year’s Premier League title - having “won enough”.
The manager was speaking after suffering a shock defeat to rivals Manchester United on Saturday lunchtime, leaving his side five points behind leaders Arsenal having played a game more.
United are also only a point off City, who were dumped out of the Carabao Cup at Southampton in midweek.
Guardiola suggested he would be content with his players whether or not they won these competitions, so long as they put in a good performance.
He told BT Sport: “I don’t care in the Premier League and the Carabao Cup if we don’t win, we won a late so... it’s not a problem. The problem is performing how we have done.
“So Carabao Cup is out. It doesn’t matter. But we didn’t perform how we are. And today we performed.
“Don’t be distracted by what happened today in the first goal, focus on a few days.”
City led through Jack Grealish at Old Trafford before a controversial goal from Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford’s winner, with Guardiola keen not to complain publicly about the leveller.
He said: “The game was really good, we played really good. They are a good team on the counter-attack.
“Well Rashford offside, Bruno Fernandes no. [Whether] Rashford intervened or not... distracted our goalkeeper and defenders... the rule I know is the rule. But I know how well we played.”
