Roy Hodgson ready for more Pep Guardiola silent treatment if Watford upset Man City

Roy Hodgson has admitted he would accept the cold shoulder from Pep Guardiola for the rest of his life if it meant Watford could kick-start their survival bid with a shock win at Manchester City on Saturday.

The Hornets have lost their last 14 matches to the current Premier League leaders and not got the better of them since 1989.

Veteran manager Hodgson has fared better in recent years, securing a memorable 3-2 win at the Etihad in 2018 and also holding City to a draw two years ago whilst in charge of Crystal Palace.

A repeat result would be hugely welcome, especially after last weekend’s late loss at home to Brentford left Watford seven points from safety with only six games left.

“It wouldn’t be a statistic I knew about, I do now but I shall not be using it because it would not in any way motivate the players,” Hodgson said of the Hornets’ 14-game losing streak to City.

“We are unfortunate in the sense there could have been a time where you go to Man City and they are in between fixtures, they have a Champions League game coming up and they have already sewn the league up, so they have no worries in that respect and you go up there and they are in party mood.

“Now of course we will face a deadly serious Man City, who if they don’t beat us to get the three points, it will be a massive blow. Pep didn’t speak to me for a long while after Palace managed to steal a win up there and if we get a win this time, he will probably never speak to me again!”

While City do host Real Madrid in the last four of the Champions League on Tuesday, they are also neck-and-neck with Liverpool in the title race and only a single point above their rivals.

Struggling Watford have suffered some heavy defeats to Guardiola’s leaders in recent