Tuesday 13 March 2018 07:29, UK
Stoke City manager Paul Lambert believes Manchester City are one of the best teams he has faced, after the league leaders secured a 2-0 victory over the Potters on Monday.
David Silva struck early in both halves meaning City will win the title if they beat Everton and local rivals Manchester United in their next two Premier League matches.
Lambert praised Pep Guardiola side's style of play despite the loss leaving his team in 19th place, one point off safety with eight games to play.
"They are as good a team as I have seen in a long time," he told Monday Night Football. "I think with their movement, trying to keep them at bay [was hard].
"The first goal was a bit of an error from us. If you look at the movement, Sane does really well with pulling Moritz [Bauer] really wide and he's got to try and cover Silva making runs from the midfield too. Defensively we got caught and it was the same for the second goal.
"I think the way they play the game is terrific, the passing, the movement, you don't really see it until you get close to it, it's a very difficult game to stop. This is a really really top side we have come up against."
Lambert explained that he spoke with Guardiola after the final whistle to congratulate the 47-year-old and his side.
However, the Stoke manager was impressed with his own team's work rate and their refusal to give up on the match.
"I have to give my own team a lot of credit; we never capitulated," he said. "This game was never going to define where we are at the end of the season.
"I am not going to criticise the team, we gave it everything, we stuck at it. There were one or two moments that might have gone our way but it didn't.
"Everton here [at the bet365] on Saturday is tough but we have a really good spirit within the team. It is a different game for us and we won't come up against Man City every other week."
