Manchester City-Liverpool rivalry has gone on for only 5 years, it cannot be compared to Novak Djokovic, Federer and Nadal's battles: Pep Guardiola

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola believes his side and Liverpool have a long way to go before their rivalry can be compared to the one between Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal.

Manchester City and Liverpool will lock horns this Sunday in the Premier League in a potential title-decider. The rivalry between the two sides has headlined English and European football in recent years has shown no signs of slowing down.

Meanwhile, the Big 3 have dominated tennis for close to two decades, winning a whopping 61 Majors among themselves. The three have competed in over 100 matches against one another in what is now the most celebrated rivalry in tennis history.

Speaking to the media ahead of his side's clash against Liverpool, Pep Guardiola was asked if the growing rivalry between the two footballing giants was comparable to the one between the Big 3 in tennis.

The Catalan coach pointed out that the rivalry between Manchester City and Liverpool is still in its nascent stage. That said, he feels maintaining longevity in football is tougher than in other sports.

“I would say Nadal, Federer and now Djokovic is two decades and we are five years. In football the situations run quicker and to maintain success for long time is more difficult than other sports. But I will remember my period here when I will be retired watching golf and playing, I’ll remember rivalry, the biggest of them was Liverpool," Guardiola said.

Interestingly, Guardiola's counterpart at Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp, also referenced Federer and Nadal when asked about the rivalry between the two footballing sides.

Pep Guardiola believes "consistency" sets players like Novak Djokovic, Federer & Nadal apart

According to Pep Guardiola, being consistent is what sets the good teams and players apart from the rest of the pack. The coach believes consistency is one of the toughest traits to develop in sport, which is why the dominance of Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer over the past two decades deserves special mention.

“For both teams the credit I give is the consistency through the years for many years; it is not just winning one Premier League, both teams are there like for four or five years," Guardiola said.

"This is the most difficult thing in sport and that is why Federer, Nadal and Djokovic and all athletes around the world for all the sport, when they get 50 years being everyday there, that is what I am proud most. But arriving in these stages, fighting for the titles we wanna lift it, we wanna try it."