Their slogans to the outside world were deafening, but if their actual strength and performances failed to live up to them, they would become nothing but empty talk.
Guardiola was clearly not someone who liked running his mouth. On the contrary, he preferred to quietly get things done behind the scenes.
When many people saw the fixture list, they assumed Man City's toughest stretch was already over.
That was because there were no more powerful opponents coming up.
Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal, and Liverpool had all been dealt with. Of the Premier League's four big clubs, only Liverpool had taken three points at home; every other one had been swept by Man City.
That record was absolutely solid.
Many media outlets believed that Man City could relax for a while. As long as they performed normally, they would be able to preserve their hard-earned lead and win the Premier League title.
But in reality, it was not that simple.
The current Man City side was worn out from prolonged combat. There was no need to mention how much the players had been drained. By March and April, everyone was already approaching their physical limits, yet Man City still had to keep fighting on three fronts. It was an extremely frightening situation.
It was like someone working overtime at the office for an entire week. At last, the weekend arrived, and they thought they could finally rest, only for the boss to suddenly say, "Sorry, our company just landed a major order. Everyone's working overtime this weekend."
Even if the boss offered high wages, generous overtime pay, and enticing bonuses, wouldn't the employees still feel like cursing him out? Forget working with particular enthusiasm—being able to perform at their usual level would already be pretty good.
If you imagined the players