FA CUP, SEMI-FINAL I’M PIPPED GUARDIOLA

For all his success the City boss is nervous of Wembley tonight revealing: I’ve struggled a lot in semi-finals..i’ve always found the finals easier to win

PEP GUARDIOLA fears he could fall victim to his semifinal troubles again tonight – at the hands of his former Manchester City assistant.

For all his glittering success with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City, Guardiola has lost seven of the 21 semi-finals he has been involved in as a manager.

By his own admission, he has found semis a tougher hurdle to clear than finals, which is why he is wary about today’s Wembley clash with Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.

Asked about the prospect of an all-manchester final with United, Guardiola cited his dubious semifinal record as a reason not to look too far ahead.

“I would say that United have to beat Chelsea and we have to beat Arsenal first,” he said. “And on both sides, that’s not easy.

“I don’t know what to say, I’m not even thinking for one second about who our opponent could be in the final.

“I struggled a lot in my career in the semi-finals. It was easier in the finals. I handled them much, much better. It’s more difficult in the semis, so after that we’ll see what happens. The players know it will be so tight. I have the same opinion of Arsenal and Mikel. My opinion didn’t change when they beat Liverpool or lost to Brighton, not for one second.

“So we expect a tough game. They have something special – team spirit. Mikel has created that. I’m pretty sure the right person to bring them back is in. They have the right man. I’ve a feeling he’s creating something unique. If they give him what he needs, they’ll be a contender in future years.”

City lost to Arsenal in the semifinals in 2017, Guardiola’s first year in charge, since when he has led the Blues to two Premier League titles, one FA Cup and three League Cups.

“It’s changed a lot since then,” said Guardiola. “After what we’ve done in the last few seasons, I expect people will think that we’re the favourites.

“But I’ve never won a game before because I was the favourite or lost a game because I was not the favourite. We lost that day. It was a tight game but we were still getting to know each other.

“Now it’s another semi-final and there are a lot of factors – concentration, set-pieces, throwins, the minimal details.

“How strong you are in your head, how you are in the bad moments, how you overcome the bad situations, how you never drop, never give up, all of that matters

“These games are about mentality, not tactics. We are ready to play another final and it will be a good test to see if we are ready to play against Real Madrid in the Champions League.”

come into the first team then you have created a base to be successful over a number of years. “It’s Arsenal’s job to find more experienced players to help them. Then you can build up a really, really good team playing for the title.” Nelson grabbed the winner against Liverpool in midweek to join Nketiah, Saka, Willock and Gabriel Martinelli as the fifth Arsenal player under 20 to score in the league this season. Jonker (right) added: “Those guys all have their own story. Reiss, his talent wasn’t questioned at all. Everybody could see, and when I say everybody I mean absolutely everybody. “Nketiah was a different story, it wasn’t so easy to see. His mentality was the thing that made us decide to give him a chance. “I had big fights with Joe, but believed in his potential. It was a real fight to keep him in the club. “Bukayo was always tall and strong and could run faster and shooter harder than team-mates or opponents. It was such a physical advantage it was easy to doubt he was really a good player technically. “You’re never sure what’s going to happen, but I’m proud to see the success of a lot of them.”