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City, who were hunting a fifth straight PL title at the start of the season, suffered a costly collapse in form from late October.
Manchester City’s Matheus Nunes (AFP)
Manchester City’s Matheus Nunes admitted sheepishly that securing qualification to the UEFA Champions League would be their “Premier League trophy” this season, after having registered a dismal campaign so far.
The Portuguese scored a last-gasp winner against Aston Villa on Tuesday to lift Pep Guardiola’s men to third in the table, four points ahead of seventh-placed Villa.
City have been struggling to stay alive in the top-five race, with the Premier League season coming to a close end, with spots 3-7 all interchangeable within a few points.
With Liverpool on the brink of the Premier League title and Arsenal sitting comfortably in second place, the next five clubs are battling for the three remaining UCL slots.
Nottingham Forest, Newcastle, and Chelsea are the other sides in the mix for a top-five finish.
City, who were hunting a fifth straight PL title at the start of the season, suffered a costly collapse in form from late October.
But they can still end their season on a high, with Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Forest at Wembley coming hot on the heels of their vital win against Unai Emery’s Villa.
“This is our Premier League trophy now, to qualify for the Champions League,” Nunes said after scoring his first league goal for City in his second season at the club.
“I think it’s massively important for us, in terms of everything, the club, in terms of the players, the mentality.”
The 26-year-old admitted, though, that these were nowhere near the expectations Pep Guardiola’s side started the season off with, reiterating that City were disappointed in themselves for their slump.
“The club’s standards are much higher than this,” he said.
“We know that there are not the standards we want this club to be at.
“But this is our reality now, and we have to accept it. And we just have to go for it like it’s the Champions League, the Premier League trophy.”
Since losing Ballon D’or winner Rodri earlier this season, Guardiola’s side has been on a downward spiral, slumping in the PL while also enduring a crushing exit from the UCL, thanks to the now-eliminated Real Madrid, in the playoffs earlier this year.
(with agency inputs)
