Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola knows what his side must do in order to deny Liverpool an historic sweep of all four major trophies this season.
Wednesday's 3-0 victory over Brighton restored the Citizens to the Premier League summit 24 hours after Jurgen Klopp's men had nudged ahead following their thrashing of Manchester United.
And Pep knows his side has to continue in the same vein for the rest of the league season to clinch the crown and ruin Liverpool's quadruple dreams.
Guardiola's thoughts on Premier League showdown
"The feeling today is that we are now mathematically going to play in the Champions League. People can say it is normal but it is not," Guardiola told the BBC after City clinched their 12th consecutive appearance in Europe's most prestigious club competition with victory on Wednesday.
"You only have to look at the incredible teams fighting to get into the Champions League. Now for the Premier League, we are not stupid.
"If we drop just two points, Liverpool will be champions. If we win all games we will be champions. The players know it.
"We know the tough games we have and we must try to perform like today and win all the games. If we do that we will celebrate, if not we will congratulate Liverpool."
What titles can City win this season?
City's interest in England's two cup competitions has already ended, after going down to West Ham United in the Carabao Cup and Liverpool in Saturday's FA Cup semi-final.
But Pep's men are still in the running for the Premier League and Champions League, holding a tiny advantage over the Reds in the former.
With six games remaining City are a single point ahead, while if the season ends in a tie Liverpool have the edge at the moment by virtue of their superior goal difference.
The two front-runners could also conceivably meet in the Champions League final should they win their respective semis; the Reds, meanwhile, already crowned Carabao Cup champions and awaiting Chelsea in the FA Cup final, could become the first team in history to complete the quadruple with a strong finish to 2021-22.
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