Football
Jonathan Smith, Manchester City correspondent 6y

Man City's Pep Guardiola: '100 points, I still cannot believe it'

SOUTHAMPTON -- Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola was ecstatic at reaching the 100-point mark in the Premier League, but insisted they will never achieve it again.

City became the first team to reach a century of points in English top-flight history when they beat Southampton thanks to Gabriel Jesus' 94th-minute goal.

Guardiola insists his side can get even better but he doesn't believe that City can beat the records they set this season for most points, most goals and most wins. They also finished 19 points clear of second-placed Manchester United, another record.

"One-hundred points, I still cannot believe it," he said in his postmatch news conference. "Premier League, 100 points, it's a massive achievement."

Asked if they can get better, he added: "When you analyse the numbers, I will say, can we improve the numbers? No. There I agree with you. We cannot be better in terms of numbers.

"In terms of playing football, yes. Because the players can do better, the manager as well, as a group, as a team, we can do better."

City were desperate to bring up 100 points despite clinching the Premier League title four weeks ago but had to wait until the final moments of the season to achieve it.

Guardiola celebrated the goal emphatically with his bench, as did the players with the substitutes running down the touchline to join in, just in front of the fans.

"The game was complicated, so tough, hot, the opponent is so strong, physicality with [Oriol] Romeu and [Pierre-Emile] Hojbjerg and three-five in the back, defending so deep," Guardiola added.

"And our rhythm was not so high because of course the last week we trained not too much. And in our minds, you know, it's already over.

"But during the game we were focused, and at the end, an excellent pass from Kevin [De Bruyne] and an amazing finish from Gabriel made the difference and achieved that record. One-hundred points is a lot, 50 points at home, 50 points away, it means how stable, how good we were all this season."

City also set the record for most successive victories earlier in the season but Guardiola said he is more proud of the way they played than for any particular record.

"The favourite [thing] is the way we play," he said. "Because always the numbers are a consequence of what we have done in terms of the way we play and the mentality, in every game, and every game, you cannot achieve 100 points if you drop games.

"A lot of goals, concede few, lots of points, wins at home, wins away, everything was perfect this season. And we finished the way we deserved to finish.

"The way we play, especially without the ball. Because always we cannot speak with the quality of players there is. But you cannot achieve what we achieve, in terms of many, many numbers, if you are not a humble team without the ball, be professional, the desire to take the ball, and win and win and win.

"So it's massive. It's a lot of points. Now it's time to rest. Except the guys who go to the World Cup, time to rest, enjoy the summer and prepare well for the next season."

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