Pep Guardiola breaks another Prem record after securing 150th Man City win

Pep Guardiola secured his 150th Premier League victory as Manchester City boss on Wednesday night - and has become the fastest manager to achieve the feat.

The Spaniard saw his reigning champions remain in second place behind league leaders Chelsea with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Steven Gerrard's Aston Villa.

First-half goals from Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva put City on their way to a vital three points and, despite Ollie Watkins' strike early in the second period, the visitors held on for the victory.

The win will be all the more memorable as it ensured that Guardiola won for the 150th time as a Premier League manager.

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And while the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager may not be too bothered about individual records, he'll undoubtedly be chuffed at making more history in England.

Having reached the landmark victory in just his 204th match, it means he is the quickest manager to do so; beating some of his fiercest rivals along the way.

Indeed, research from William Hill has found that Guardiola has managed the achievement 26 matches faster than his nearest rival Jose Mourinho, who achieved the feat after 230 games.

He has also reached the milestone significantly faster than two other Premier League greats, with Sir Alex Ferguson taking 247 matches and Arsene Wenger needing 258 games.

The win has also ensured that Guardiola has a 74 per cent win rate from his 204 matches. After 150 victories, Mourinho had achieved a 65 per cent win rate, with Ferguson on 61 per cent and Wenger on 58 per cent.

While City have every chance of retaining their top-flight crown, Guardiola fears that his City side could be facing an "emergency" as injuries, illness and suspensions cut into his squad.

The Premier League champions have been without midfielders Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish and Phil Foden in recent weeks due to coronavirus, in the Belgian's case, and knocks for the England pair.

De Bruyne is now out of isolation but Wednesday's trip to Aston Villa came too soon while Grealish and Foden were only fit enough to make the bench on Wednesday night.

To add to the issues, defender Aymeric Laporte missed the game after collecting his fifth booking of the season against West Ham on Sunday.

Speaking before the trip to Villa, Guardiola admitted he can ill afford any more problems heading into a difficult December.

The Spaniard said: "We are in an emergency for the intensity of the squad. We have few people.

"I never complain, I never miss the players who cannot play for any reason and I trust a lot the players. When one is out, another one comes in.

"But to sustain it in December - the toughest month of the year - the fact is we are in trouble because we have few players. We have just 15 or 14 players and we are in a difficult position because a lot of players play a lot of minutes."

A busy December it may be, but Guardiola will certainly savour making more Premier League history.