Pep Guardiola admits catching Liverpool in title race will be 'difficult' after Man City slip up at Newcastle

Pep Guardiola admits Manchester City are now in an uphill battle to try and deny Liverpool the Premier League title after a shock defeat to Newcastle.

Sergio Aguero opened the scoring after just 24 seconds but Salomon Rondon and Matt Richie struck in the second half to secure a huge win for Rafa Benitez’s side at St James’ Park.

A defeat for City means Liverpool can open up a seven point lead at the summit of the Premier League when they host Leicester at Anfield on Wednesday night.

And Guardiola was left to regret another setback for his side in their quest to become the first team to defend the league title in 10 years.

"It is difficult,” Guardiola told BT Sport.

“We have a chance to do it but we need to win our games. The advantage is not there but we need to continue.

We have to do our games and know what we have to do. You can lose. Football is competitive."