WE’LL BE KILLED IF WE LOSE!
Guardiola’s warning for his City stars
PEP GUARDIOLA puts his Champions League record on the line at the Etihad tonight warning that Manchester City’s critics will ‘kill’ them if they lose to Monaco.
Guardiola has never failed to reach the semi-finals of the competition in seven attempts as coach of Barcelona and Bayern Munich, winning it twice while in charge at the Nou Camp.
But the City manager is only too aware of the threat posed by Monaco, the French Ligue 1 leaders and the highest-scoring team in any of Europe’s major leagues.
City’s opponents in the last 16 beat Tottenham home and away in this season’s group stage and have progressed on the last four occasions they have faced English clubs in a two-legged tie.
The pressure is on Guardiola’s side to produce a big performance in tonight’s first leg, and he urged his players to rise to the occasion or face the consequences.
‘It’s not easy to be here,’ he said. ‘This club knows that perfectly. The recent history is quite good but the long history, Manchester City was not here for a long time.
‘I’d like to convince the players to enjoy the moment because it is beautiful. All of Europe will watch us. They will analyse us — and kill us if we don’t win.
‘People can think with City, England, the most prestigious football, the most media, most advertising in the world, you have to be here. But a lot of big clubs are not here. You have to live that situation. We are lucky guys.
‘Always I play the competition in that sense, even in Barca and Bayern. That is a huge experience and it’s beautiful to live it.’
Inspired by a rejuvenated Radamel Falcao, Monaco have scored 76 goals in 26 league games this season to move three points clear of Paris Saint-Germain, who rocked Guardiola’s old club Barcelona 4-0 last week.
He said: ‘I don’t need a result like PSG-Barcelona to realise how good French football is. How physical they are. My opinion about Monaco before the game and after remains the same. It is the most successful team in Europe in terms of scoring goals.
‘As a spectator, it is so nice to see them. The full backs play like wingers, the wingers play like attacking midfielders. The two strikers are fighters. Both holding midfielders are intelligent and strong. A complete team.
‘In the Champions League the level and pressure is so high. There has to be 100 per cent focus.’
Falcao endured a miserable spell in the Premier League, scoring four goals in one season at Manchester United on loan from Monaco and once for Chelsea the following campaign. But the Colombian is rediscovering the form that persuaded Monaco to pay Atletico Madrid £52million for him in 2013, scoring 22 goals in 28 appearances so far this season.
Guardiola said: ‘The way Monaco play is perfect for him. They attack inside and cross a lot and he needs that. That’s why he’s back.’
The Spaniard must get the best out of his own top scorer, Sergio Aguero, amid speculation over the Argentine’s future at the club.
Aguero is set to lead the attack after new signing Gabriel Jesus was ruled out for the rest of the season with a broken metatarsal. Guardiola will also be without captain Vincent Kompany and, probably, Gael Clichy tonight.
‘Aguero knows we are here to help him,’ said Guardiola, who must choose between goalkeepers Willy Caballero and Claudio Bravo. ‘We are going to talk with him like with all of his team-mates to convince him in these two games we are going to be able to do our best performance.’
Guardiola once again brought up City’s lack of history on Europe’s biggest stage despite reaching the semi-finals last season under Manuel Pellegrini.
Kevin De Bruyne accepts City cannot compare to some of their English rivals, but believes that could change over time.
‘It is very important for people who have to evaluate us and criticise us to see we are going in the right direction,’ he said.
‘I’m talking about criticism from people who compare us to Manchester United and Liverpool. They have the history.
‘You cannot compare us to them because we did not have the history in the Champions League. We need the same amount of time.’