The Premier League champions face the Championship side in the FA Cup fifth round tonight (28.02.23) and Guardiola will not be taking the game lightly with the opposition in strong form.

The City boss said: "Last 12 games no defeat – that gives me a lot of info. It means they are there.

"It’s a final. The FA Cup is an important competition, really important. It’s a serious team that is going to play tomorrow."

The cup tie provides a break from the Premier League title race for City and Guardiola accepts that his team cannot afford to keep dropping points if they are to have any chance of catching Arsenal.

He told reporters: "I have the feeling in the Premier League many things are going to happen.

"Everyone is going to drop points but we cannot drop any if we are going to fight until the end."

City have suffered some frustrating results in recent weeks but Guardiola feels that his players are in good spirits for the remainder of the season.

He said: "The game we are playing is good. The results could be better – in terms of winning at Spurs or Nottingham – but sometimes that happens.

"Of course it’s not exceptional – it’s OK, it’s good – but I don’t have complaints with the way we are playing and fighting.

"I said after the last game against Bournemouth that the mood in the locker room is exceptional and the guys are doing everything, and that’s enough for me."