Pep Guardiola believes Arsenal and Liverpool's ability to score late goals is helping their Premier League title bid - and is something his City side don't have.
The Manchester City boss is gunning to win his sixth Premier League title. City thumped Luton 5-1 at the Etihad on Saturday.
But Guardiola believes that constant late shows at Anfield and the Emirates have put Liverpool and Arsenal in control. He said: “With the contenders we have in Arsenal and Liverpool, we cannot draw many games. That's why we are still there.
“The only biggest difference between Arsenal, Liverpool and us is that they won a lot of points in stoppage-time. A lot. That helped them be in the position they are. Of course, all three teams have had incredible seasons. But they won a lot of points for the talent they have because of this [late goals].
“It happened for Liverpool many times in the last eight years and for Arsenal many times, because of their talent. It's a credit to them, not the opposite.
“In that department they are much better than us, but still we're there. What a privilege. I would not change our position for any other team.”
While Guardiola has highlighted both Liverpool and Arsenal’s abilities to score late on, former Reds star Jamie Carragher has also pointed to the same. Speaking last month, he said: "Since the five-sub rule came in, no one has utilised it better than Jurgen Klopp.
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“When we highlight Arsenal, we think about how they can win the league... they're the best defensively. Manchester City are probably the best team and have got the best individuals. But this is where Liverpool could win the league - from the bench.
"Jurgen Klopp always uses five subs. When we talk about using the bench, the interesting thing is that when it comes to subs used, Liverpool dwarf Arsenal and Man City.
"It shows the power from the bench, certainly in terms of scoring goals - 38 per cent of them have come after the 75th minute. Would you believe, Liverpool have actually scored a bigger percentage of goals in the final 15 minutes than they have in the entire first half of matches. It shows they've got players ready to come off the bench, they've got quality, and credit to Jurgen Klopp."
Unfortunately for Liverpool, they weren’t able to tap into their powers of recovery as their Premier League hopes took a severe blow against Crystal Palace. Klopp’s side slumped to a 1-0 defeat to the Eagles at Anfield, with Eberechi Eze netting the winning goal.
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