Gary Neville thinks that Liverpool and Chelsea players have been impacted by the negative attitude of their managers in recent press conferences.
Thomas Tuchel and Jurgen Klopp have been highly critical of the Premier League for the bruising schedule over Christmas and the matchday uncertainty caused by a surge in Covid cases.
Those complaints have mirrored a nosedive in their respective chances of winning the Premier League this season; Chelsea were a point clear at the top of the table on December 1 but have dropped 11 points from their last seven games; Liverpool were two points behind Chelsea at that stage but have taken just one point from their last three matches.
Seven straight wins in that time for Pep Guardiola's side — as part of a run of 11 consecutive victories — have lifted them 10 points clear of their rivals.
The City boss belatedly admitted on New Year's Day that their squad have also been battling Covid absences, and Neville believes that the very different approach towards player availability from Klopp and Tuchel have got into the heads of their stars.
"I look at Manchester City, they are a unique team — we've never seen anything like them in this country. The way in which they play football and dominate the game," he told Sky Sports. "They weren't the best at Arsenal, but they won.
"Over the last four weeks, City have been outstanding. There has been a lot of negativity in the press conferences around player welfare, Covid, fitness, too many games from the other two clubs [Chelsea and Liverpool] and that does get into players' minds.
"I'm not quite sure where they have come from, but it has coincided with some dropped points and performances which weren't at their best. Chelsea and Liverpool delivered a great game [on Sunday] but, over the last month, they have suffered from a feeling of not quite being ready.
"I get the fact it's unique times, but these are exceptional teams and managers. Manchester City have had players missing, many players missing over the last two to three years and have had to cope with it."
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