Guardiola’s side host Everton on Boxing Day, before traveling to Leicester on December 29 and playing at home to West Ham on January 4.
With all three opponents in the bottom seven, it offers City the chance to improve on a terrible recent record of four points from eight games, which Guardiola acknowledges has left their lofty European ambitions in doubt.
“The only team that has been in the Champions League in recent years has been Manchester City,” he added.
“We are at risk now, of course we are. Definitely.”
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United finished in the top four of the Premier League from the 2005-06 to 2008-09 seasons. At least three of them also held the top four spots for 15 consecutive seasons until 2012.
But United have spent five of the last 11 seasons outside the Champions League. Arsenal spent six seasons out of the competition before returning last season. Liverpool have missed all but one of the seven years since 2010, while Chelsea are in their second consecutive campaign outside Europe’s elite.
This season the threat to City comes from unexpected sources. As well as Forest and Bournemouth, Aston Villa are ahead of City, while Newcastle, Fulham and Brighton are also within a couple of points.
“There are many contenders,” said Guardiola, whose team has lost nine of its last 12 games in all competitions. “For all clubs it is very important and if we don’t win games, we will be eliminated.
“If we don’t qualify it is because we don’t deserve it, because we weren’t prepared and because we had a lot of problems and we didn’t solve them.”
