Pep Guardiola feels Manchester City will have to win all their remaining five games to pip Liverpool and retain the Premier League title.
City briefly took top spot on Sunday afternoon following a 3-1 win at Crystal Palace, until the Reds went back to the summit by beating Chelsea.
It means City remain two points behind but, crucially, they have a game in hand, and Guardiola believes they cannot afford a single slip-up during the run-in.
"We think Liverpool are going to win all their games, but the Premier League position is in our hands," said Guardiola.
"We have to win every game if we want to make back-to-back titles. We know that, and the players have shown they want to do it, and I didn't have any doubts about that."
Selhurst Park has been a graveyard for title campaigns in the recent past, notably when Liverpool's wheels came off in 2014 and City suffered a similar fate a year later.
But Raheem Sterling's double and a late third from Gabriel Jesus, after Luka Milivojevic gave Palace brief hope with a free-kick, kept City's bid to retain their crown firmly on track.
"I'm so pleased. The amount of games we have had - Brighton, and three days later the Champions League, and now here, and the way we played for 75 or 80 minutes was really good.
"In two seasons we've got 83 points with five games left. Incredible numbers and it shows how consistent we are."
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