Pep Guardiola has stated that Manchester City must fight to keep their Champions League knockout qualification chances alive following their defeat at Juventus.
Before this season, City had gone two seasons without a defeat in Europe in regulation time, and they have now lost two of their past three Champions League games, the most recent at Juventus, leaving them winless in nine of their last ten games in all competitions.
With two games remaining, City falls to 22nd in the 36-team league phase, one point above the cut-off for a play-off tie in the new year. A top eight finish is almost probably beyond them, and Guardiola has altered his emphasis to merely ensure some sort of Champions League football beyond the league phase. Reported by Uk Sport.
City followed Guardiola’s pre-match instructions to keep things simple against Juventus, but they struggled to convert it into scoring opportunities, leaving them to rue two more costly defensive mistakes.
Guardiola, however, disagreed with the notion that City’s defeat in Turin was due to mistakes. “That wasn’t the reason today,” he explained.
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“We miss the last pass, fail to arrive in the six-yard box and penalty spot on numerous occasions, and then maintain our cool to make the moment and assist. This was the difference today. But we’re the best; I adore my squad and the way we play. The results will not convince me otherwise.
“We performed exceptionally well throughout the night. At 1-0, we became more insistent. We are a team, the quicker they make the transitions. We play the right tempo, I would say the chances, we didn’t shoot but we were so close. One day we will find it. I like a lot my team.”
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