Manchester City are running away with the title – despite playing on a pitch Pep Guardiola says is not fit for purpose.
Guardiola said City must sort out the grass at the Etihad Stadium, after admitting Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal all have better playing surfaces.
And Guardiola said even the Puskas Arena in Budapest, which has hosted several Champions League games because of Covid-19 travel restrictions, is in better condition than City's pitch.
Four games in 11 days has not helped City's pitch and it is understood there was not enough time between the end of last season and the start of this campaign to relay a new surface.
“They're working a lot,” said Guardiola. “We're trying to find a solution but the grass is not good.
“All the players know how good the grass is, but sometimes it’s not.
“I know the weather conditions here in England are tough, but there are stadiums where the grass is good.
“We were in London against Arsenal, we were in Anfield, even in Old Trafford and the grass was better than ours.
“We were in Budapest, and the grass was incredible, like a red carpet, so it was amazing and our grass still isn’t good and we need it."
City's pitch will get a breather today, with Guardiola's side travelling to Fulham for the late kick-off.
Guardiola has been impressed with the way Scott Parker has stuck to his football principles and played the same way, despite the threat of relegation.
“Since day one, Fulham have played incredibly well,” said Guardiola.
“They were relegated with Scott at the end of the season and, after that, they were promoted.
“In English football, there are some incredibly good managers, such as Graham Potter at Brighton and Scott at Fulham.
“Many of them have courage to play. In my fifth season in England, I have never seen the lower teams with this quality of play.
“I saw it here with Fulham earlier this season. The pace they play with, the organisation - a real tough, tough opponent.
“Even the games when they didn’t have success with the results, like Brighton, always the way they played was positive. So it’s a challenge for us on Saturday.”
