Pep Guardiola has insisted that Manchester City can not always be at the top of the tree and accepts that the current plight of Liverpool and Chelsea could easily happen to his own team.
City and Liverpool have finished the Premier League season a point apart twice in the last four seasons, but Jurgen Klopp's side will travel to the Etihad Stadium today trailing their second-placed hosts by 19 points.
It is a far cry from last season, when only a City comeback from 2-0 down against Aston Villa denied the Reds a 20th league title as they chased down an unprecedented quadruple of trophies. But Liverpool's drop-off this season has been stark and Guardiola is only too aware that the same fate could hit his own side in the future.