Marc Guehi dismisses talk that Manchester City were expected to hammer Burnley

Marc Guehi believes anyone who had expected Manchester City to brush aside Burnley with a lop-sided scoreline as they went top of the Premier League on Wednesday night “doesn’t know football”.

Erling Haaland’s fifth-minute goal was enough for Pep Guardiola’s side to take a 1-0 win at Turf Moor that relegated Burnley and put City top of the standings on goals scored, ending Arsenal’s 200-day reign three days after they beat the Gunners 2-1 at the Etihad.

But while many had been expecting City to rack up the goals against Burnley and boost their goal difference in the fight against Arsenal – a prospect that seemed on after Haaland’s early strike – City were frustrated as only one of their 28 attempts on goal found the net.

“Everyone thinks these games are easy, when a lot of emotion and focus went into the last game against Arsenal,” Guehi said.

“You’re playing a team that’s fighting for their lives, it’s not going to be easy. Whoever thought it was going to be easy clearly doesn’t know football. I’m glad everyone did their jobs, dug in. The most important thing was just to get the win.”

With five league games left to play City are top of the table for the first time since August, but Guehi insisted he was not thinking about that for now.

With an FA Cup semi-final against Southampton up next for Guardiola’s men, Arsenal will play two league games before City’s next Premier League assignment, away to Everton on May 4.

“I think it really is our priority to just focus on ourselves,” Guehi said. “We can only control what we can control, so we played the game against Arsenal, we were able to control that game and now it’s just up to us to make sure that we do the best in the games that we have.”

With City unable to add to