Chelsea boss Antonio Conte insists Manchester City are still capable of mounting a title challenge, despite their manager Pep Guardiola ruling them out of the race.
Guardiola originally made the claim last month after City lost 4-0 at Everton and he repeated it following their 4-0 victory at West Ham on Wednesday.
Conte was in the stands at the London Stadium watching that game, and afterwards Guardiola told reporters: “He doesn’t have to be too worried about what he saw today. He’s 10 points in front of us. Only Chelsea can lose the Premier League.”
But Conte, whose team face third-placed Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, felt the City boss was playing mind games.
“It’s a normal mental strategy that every single coach tries to use for his players, and also to try to put a bit of pressure on the other team,” Conte said.
“We all know the real potential of Manchester City. I think that they have a great squad, a lot of fantastic players, and they played a really good game against West Ham.
“If someone thinks that the league is finished, I’m not so sure.”
This post was last modified on 04/02/2017