Arne Slot says Manchester City have now done something that's 'good news' for the Premier League

Today at 03:15 AM

Liverpool and Manchester City look set to revive their epic Premier League title battles from several years ago.

Arne Slot’s Reds and Pep Guardiola’s Citizens are currently first and second in the table, with Arsenal third in the standings at present.

Last season, Liverpool were involved in an exciting three-horse race along with Man City and Arsenal.

However, they were the first of the three to drop out of contention as their form tailed in mid-April.

This season, the Reds have looked incredibly strong and will be hoping to go all the way in pursuit of a second title this decade.

Slot, speaking to the Liverpool media team on Friday, now believes Man City have done something that is “good news for the league”.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot welcomes Pep Guardiola’s new Manchester City contract

This week, Man City put an end to speculation over Guardiola’s future by announcing a new contract for the Spaniard.

Guardiola has signed a two-year extension at the Etihad Stadium that will see him at the helm of the four-in-a-row champions until 2027.

When asked about the news from across the M62, Slot said: “That is good news for City, first of all, and also good news for the league.

“Because I think everybody wants to have the best managers possible over here and the best players over here – and he is definitely one of the best managers, maybe the best manager, in the league.

“If you look at what he did in the last few years, four times champions in a row, it's fair to say that he is maybe the best manager in the league.

“So, that is a good thing, but on the other hand they have so many quality players that if he had made the choice to leave the club I wouldn't have expected them to have ended up bottom of the league next season.

“Yes, good for the City fans and interesting for us as managers to keep on facing one of the best managers football has ever had.”

Guardiola ‘keeps seeing challenges’

Sam Lee, The Athletic’s Man City correspondent, spoke to BBC Radio 5 Live about Guardiola’s extension.

He said: “(Guardiola) has got this incredible drive, hasn’t he? People say if you asked him 10 years ago if he’d stay he would have said ‘no chance’.

He said last night that ‘every time I sign a contract, I think OK this is two years and then I’m done, and then I’ll sign it [again] and go, OK this is it’.

“I think he’s just got this incredible drive to keep going. He’s got nothing to prove now.

“He could have gone, quite easily, after he won the Treble last year. But he is still there, they won four [Premier League titles] in a row, so now if you want to, you can go on a high.

“But he doesn’t think about that. He’s got motivation for a new challenge.

“We normally associate challenges with taking a bottom club to the top but I think keeping a top club at the top, we don’t see teams winning four Premier League titles in a row or first division titles in a row.

“It doesn’t really happen, they’re going for five now. He keeps seeing challenges.”