Premier League: 10 talking points from the weekend’s action

Manchester City are often praised for their ability but Pep Guardiola instead marvelled at their durability. Raheem Sterling recorded two assists at Burnley but his manager talked less about his creativity than his reliability. “He is a guy who can play every three days,” Guardiola said. “He is never injured. We have not got a massively deep squad so it is important to have players like him, Phil [Foden], Riyad [Mahrez] and Bernardo [Silva], who are never injured.” Guardiola knocked on the wood of a Turf Moor desk as he was speaking but there is statistical proof of his flair players’ toughness. Sterling has played 281 times in under six seasons for him. Only João Cancelo has made more appearances for City than Silva this season. Sterling and Mahrez are tied for fourth, behind the Portuguese pair and the goalkeeper Ederson. Their relentlessness as individuals explains City’s as a team. Richard Jolly

Match report: Burnley 0-2 Manchester City

After the latest torpid display Ralf Rangnick went further than he has done previously when assessing how long it might be before Manchester United might contend for a 21st title. “It takes right decisions: what kind of manager, what kind of players – and then in every transfer window try to get the best. This is not rocket science. If that happens it does not necessarily need three or four years – maybe two or three transfer windows, then the situation could be different.” The key word here is “could”. United are going backwards at lightning pace and the interim manager’s analysis of the squad illuminates the mess. “We spoke about that counterattacking moment we had where they tackled us twice [which presaged Leicester’s goal] and the same was true in a few other moments. It has to