SACRE BLUE
Pep’s perfect night in Paris as Mahrez magic puts City on brink
MANCHESTER CITY are 90 minutes away from a first Champions League final after a stunning comeback in Paris last night.
Pep Guardiola praised the ‘personality’ of his side, who battled back from an early Marquinhos header with goals by Kevin De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez to earn a 2-1 lead against Paris Saint-Germain ahead of next Tuesday’s semi-final second leg.
Guardiola — searching for a record-equalling third title in the competition — hailed City’s attitude in the French capital after a
shaky start, saying: ‘I admired how they changed from not doing well — it means a lot to me. ‘We convinced them at half-time that when we are who we are, everything is easier. ‘We adjusted some little, stupid things and then it depends on the personality of the players. ‘You can play cautiously in the knockouts. We were fantastic. We were more aggressive. ‘I understand the players, sometimes they don’t feel comfortable, they feel the responsibility. I’m not complaining about that. I told them not to be shy, to try to play with our identity. ‘You cannot win qualification in the first leg but you can lose it. When you are not good, you can lose two or three and it’s over. ‘They feel the responsibility. If we lose, we lose. We’ll try again next season, but try to play our game. ‘There is hard work to do, especially against a team that has Neymar. It’s a good result but everything’s open. I feel that my players know that.’ De Bruyne said that City became more intense as the game wore on as they eventually overpowered Mauricio Pochettino’s side. ‘After 25 minutes we changed the way we pressed them and it became better,’ De Bruyne said. ‘We know the quality at this stage so you have to set your mind that you will have to work hard for the team.’ PSG full back Alessandro Florenzi maintained that they are not out of the tie. ‘We lost our shape, it’s not like us,’ he said. ‘The first goal was fortunate, the second went through the wall. Details make the difference at this level. ‘We’re only halfway through the battle, they haven’t won the war yet. This team have what it takes to win in Manchester. We need 11 warriors ready to die on the pitch.’