Pep Guardiola has given Manchester United supporters some hope by claiming that the Premier League title race is not over.
The Manchester City boss suffered a fourth defeat in seven matches to United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer last Sunday, a result which saw City's lead over their neighbours in second place, reduced to eleven points.
It also brought an end to their 21-match winning run and while it would take an incredible collapse for City not to seal the title, Guardiola thinks they are not shoe-ins at this stage.
"Yeah, of course. When the option is open anything can happen in football," replied the Catalonian when asked if United could catch them.
"Nobody thought we could win 21 games in a row or 15 games in the Premier League, so anything can happen. I absolutely agree.
"For people like United, they can do it. We have 10 games left and we'll have to win six or seven games to be champions mathematically."
Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, England, Sunday, March 7, 2021. (Laurence Griffiths/Pool via AP)City don't have a lot of time to lick their wounds with a match at home against Southampton to get ready for on Wednesday evening.
Guardiola, who will have a fully fit squad to pick from for the visit of the Saints, revealed that the reaction of his players to the Manchester derby defeat has improved as the week progressed.
"It was a mixture of disappointment and sadness. The second day was a bit better and today they were completely on fire to try and play a good game tomorrow against Southampton," said Guardiola.
"It's a normal process when you lose a game, the reaction is common. I think everyone realised how difficult it is to win games, to do good things and go on good runs.
"United are a top side and top club with a good manager and good players, so it can happen.
"With the Premier League, it's so complicated and so difficult. There's still a lot of work to do to arrive in the last games to be in contention to win the Premier League. We are alive in all competitions, one final, and now the important part of the season arrives."
