LONDON • Maurizio Sarri has dismissed suggestions Chelsea are still in the title race, claiming this season would be a straight "fight between Liverpool and Manchester City".
While City manager Pep Guardiola has refused to rule the Blues out of contention, the Chelsea boss feels his fourth-placed team, who trail the front runners by 12 points, can only aim "for the top four this season, (and) no more".
At his pre-match press conference ahead of their Premier League clash with the league leaders at the Etihad tomorrow, he said: "Guardiola is in the third season in the Premier League. We have to try to reduce the gap.
"At the moment, City are the best team in Europe. We need to defend very well and to be very fast when we recover the ball.
"They are able to press really very well. If we do it, we can find spaces. But it's very difficult."
The Italian added his players were "lucky" to beat City in December when they ended the champions' 21-match unbeaten run with a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge.
Playing Guardiola's men away remains one of the toughest tasks in English football and Sarri's preparations were not helped by Eden Hazard's midweek admission he had made a decision on his future, with his Chelsea contract expiring in June 2020 and amid repeated links with a move to Real Madrid.
Asked about the speculation, which has continued to swirl over a potential move to the European champions, the 60-year-old said he wanted the Belgium forward to be "happy" wherever his future lies.
He added: "I speak every day with Eden, but I speak with Eden about his position on the pitch.
"I will be really very happy with him if he wants to stay because in my opinion, he's the best in Europe.
"But it's up to him. I want to see him happy. And so, he has to decide."
With Liverpool holding a game in hand, Guardiola is well aware any slip-up at home could hand the initiative back to Jurgen Klopp's men and he urged his players to treat the game like a "final for us".
WANDERLUST
I didn't know it. What? I'll have to install Instagram on my account. He said he was going to Paris, but Hong Kong is far away. It will definitely not be okay if he is in Hong Kong.
PEP GUARDIOLA, responding to a reporter's query on left-back Benjamin Mendy's Instagram story tagging him in Hong Kong.
The 48-year-old told reporters: "We have to play in that way. I have a lot of respect (for Chelsea).
"Everyone must work and create something. When I saw Chelsea in pre-season in (the) Charity Shield, they were already there.
"The season from Chelsea has been exceptional, the Premier League is there, they (still) have a chance to be champions, a lot of games to play and the (League) cup is there as well.
"I see how they play and recognise what they want to do."
Guardiola also backed Argentina striker Sergio Aguero, who is just one hat-trick behind Alan Shearer's league record of 11 after his treble against Arsenal last weekend, to keep "appearing in the key moments" as "important games belong to big players".
He also revealed captain Vincent Kompany and fellow defender Benjamin Mendy would not be fit for the encounter before expressing his shock that the latter was supposedly in Hong Kong, having tagged himself at the city's airport on his Instagram account.
The Spaniard added: "I didn't know it. What? I'll have to install Instagram on my account.
"He said he was going to Paris, but Hong Kong is far away. It will definitely not be okay if he is in Hong Kong."
The Frenchman yesterday clarified on Twitter it was a joke, tweeting: "It was just joking with my Uber driver. I don't want no problems with Pep."
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