John Stones and Gabriel Jesus return for Vitality Stadium clash
Friday 1 March 2019 14:51, UK
Pep Guardiola insists he is focused on Manchester City's trip to Bournemouth on Saturday because "not even the pundits" can predict who will win the Premier League title this season.
Second-placed City will return to the top with a victory or draw as leaders Liverpool do not play until Sunday, when they face Everton at Goodison Park in the Merseyside derby.
However, Guardiola has expressed his concern at the difficulty of facing Eddie Howe's side away from the Etihad Stadium, pointing to Bournemouth's 4-0 victory over Chelsea in January.
"Bournemouth at their home is always tough," City boss Guardiola said. "They are completely different at home from the team who play away.
"They know the stadium perfectly, they beat Chelsea 4-0 and played incredibly well. That is all I am concerned about, not about the future or pressure because nobody knows - not even the pundits."
City have lost just once in their last nine top-flight games, winning the other eight, and in their last three have scored nine without conceding a goal.
They edged past West Ham 1-0 on Wednesday, needing a controversial penalty from Sergio Aguero to secure all three points after Felipe Anderson was judged to have brought down Bernardo Silva.
"I was impressed after 120 minutes in the [Carabao Cup] final at how well we played against West Ham," Guardiola added. "There were chances early on - four chances, we could have scored two.
"Let's not think tomorrow is the end of the world, if we win - perfect. The Champions League is round the corner, we have the FA Cup, many games, let's hope the players recover well.
"We are in a position with 30 points to play for, one point behind Liverpool. Lots of things will happen."
Guardiola confirmed that John Stones and Gabriel Jesus will be available for selection on Saturday but the match will come too soon for Fabian Delph.
"Delph was injured and he made his first training session today," Guardiola said. "He's not in the squad [to face Bournemouth]."
