Premier League: Guardiola cautions that Manchester City's championship hopes will be doomed if they suffer defeat at the hands of West Ham

Pep Guardiola, Manchester City's Spanish manager, was seen gesticulating on the sidelines during the English Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester City at London's Emirates Stadium on September 21, 2025.

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Guardiola has warned that Manchester City's Premier League title bid "will be over" if they fail to secure a win against a resurgent West Ham on Saturday.

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City may find themselves 10 points behind leaders Arsenal at kickoff, should the Gunners emerge victorious against Everton earlier in the day, although Guardiola's team has a game in hand and will host the Gunners next month.

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A 3-0 Champions League defeat at the hands of Real Madrid on Wednesday has left City's chances of reaching the quarter-finals slim, and they must now bounce back from this disappointment.

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Guardiola stated on Friday that "the league was the most difficult title," and believes the Premier League is always the most challenging, adding that City remains in contention but acknowledging that dropping points would be disastrous.

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Guardiola has secured six Premier League titles in his nine previous seasons in England, but his team struggled last season, finishing 13 points behind champions Liverpool in third place.

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Guardiola reflected on the current season, saying "Now it is a pleasure to be here," and noted that the team was not in this position last season, adding "it's nice."

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He also stated that "always I said when I arrived in the last 10 games every team plays for something — for relegation, for Europa League, for Conference League, for Champions League, to be champions," and emphasized that "So it's normal" and "Now it is no second chances."

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West Ham remains in the relegation zone, but has lost only two of their past 11 games in all competitions, managing to climb within one point of safety and reaching the FA Cup quarter-finals.