Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan denies they're motivated by Liverpool revenge in this season's title charge.

Pep Guardiola 's side have responded to last season's disappointment in fantastic style and lead Liverpool by 10 points, and also have a game in hand.

"I mean, at the end of the day, football is a sport, in sport, you win and you also lose," Gundogan said. "Of course, you always want to be on the winning side. It's why we play the game, why we're athletes and why we're all so ambitious. I always believe when you don't lose and don't go through this frustration, the anger you can't appreciate the nice moments when you win.

"You can enjoy these moments even more. I take it as it is, as every sportsman will do. I feel like when someone else wins, they probably deserved it. Whether it's me personally or us as a team, we will try to do better next time.

"That's what we said at the start of the season and we want to do better."