PEP FIX AND CHILL
City boss puts aces ‘in fridge’ to prepare for big finale
PEP GUARDIOLA ordered his Manchester City stars to cool down – in readiness for their season reaching boiling point.
Guardiola watched the FA Cup holders dig deep to overcome a spirited Chelsea side and book a return to the final.
City needed a late winner from Bernardo Silva to take down Chelsea and keep alive their hopes of a domestic Double.
But Guardiola knows the relentless – and ridiculous – demands of a long season are in danger of taking a toll on his stars.
City return to Premier League action on Thursday with a long trip to Brighton as they bid to become the first side in English history to win four titles on the spin.
Guardiola (inset with scorer Silva) knows his players are running on fumes and has stuck them in a cold place in a bid to keep them as fresh as possible.
“I don’t understand how we survived,” said Guardiola.
“I’ll put them in the fridge for two days. Don’t see each other, stay at home with your families.
Try to rest, do nothing special.
“Then we have two days to prepare for Brighton. So it’s one game at a time.
“I just want to protect my players. It’s commonsense. I’m not asking for something special or have a privilege.”
Guardiola looked elated and relieved at the final whistle, having seen his side produce the perfect response to crashing out of the Champions League to Real Madrid a few days earlier.
He ran on to the pitch to hug his stars and reserved special praise for match-winner Silva. The City ace was left heartbroken after missing a penalty in the shoot-out defeat to Real – and Guardiola revealed he had been thinking of taking the Portuguese winger off just moments before he scored.
Guardiola added: “Always life gives you a second chance – and he took it.
“I was thinking of changing it and putting Oscar Bobb on the right. But after the goal, Bernardo is so intelligent to keep the ball.
“In that moment I could not change him. Bernardo has this special intelligence. To have Bernardo on the pitch, I feel more safe, more comfortable.
“I’m so happy, he deserves the best. They weren’t easy days for him. Many players were not in a top level and I didn’t expect it after last Wednesday.”
Mauricio Pochettino suffered his second defeat at Wembley in two months, after losing the Carabao Cup final to Liverpool in February. Pochettino (inset, above) was left
ruing some woeful finishing from Nicolas Jackson, who could have had a hat-trick but froze in front of goal.
Chelsea, who could still make Europe, must pick themselves up for the short trip to title challengers Arsenal tomorrow. And Pochettino wants his men to take a leaf out of City’s book when it comes to bouncing back from a huge loss.
The Argentine said: “It’s about moving on. Look at Manchester City. After Wednesday, it looked like it was the end of the world for them. “But it is about moving on and here they were happy after the win.
“In football you can never stop, to start to suffer, or think in a negative way. Always, it is about moving on.”
MANCHESTER CITY (3-2-4-1): ORTEGA 9; Walker 8, Akanji 7, Ake 7; Stones 7 (Dias 46, 7), Rodri 7; Silva 7, Foden 6, De Bruyne 8, Grealish 6 (Doku 66, 7); Alvarez 6 (Bobb 88). CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Petrovic 7; Gusto 6 (Disasi 79), Chalobah 7, Silva 6, Cucurella 6 (Chilwell 88); Caicedo 7, Fernandez 7 (Sterling 88); Madueke 6 (Mudryk 79), Palmer 8, Gallagher 7; Jackson 5.
REFEREE: Michael Oliver 8.