Sterling: Hunger for success drove us to Real win
Striker claims ‘extra hunger’ driving City’s Champions League bid
PLUS Pep wants Euro glory for his players/
RAHEEM Sterling believes City got their reward for their extra hunger against Real Madrid.
Pep Guardiola’s side delivered their most accomplished performance in a Champions League knockout tie and the biggest result in the club’s history of the competition as they backed up a 2-1 win at the Bernabeu with victory by the same scoreline at the Etihad.
It was a team effort from the squad after two weeks of preparation for the game and their goals came as a result of working to put their opponents in a position to make mistakes and then capitalising on them. City’s manager warned his players after their FA Cup semi-final defeat to Arsenal that any laziness would not be tolerated, and Sterling – showing the kind of authority that he has assumed in the dressing room – told his team-mates that their running throughout the 90 minutes was essential in beating Real and progressing to the quarter-finals.
“We got a great result against a great team. The most important thing from all the boys was running our socks off,” he said.
“I thought we did that well for 90 minutes. That was one of the main reasons why we got the result and I’ve said that to the boys.
“We knew it would be a very different sort of game, two teams with great qualities. I think it came down to who wanted it the most – who ran the most. I’m not saying they didn’t but we were extra hungry.
“The mentality since we got back in, day one after lockdown, has been how much we want this. We’ve got energy to progress in this competition. Energy and fight – we showed that against Madrid throughout the game.”
Central to City’s gameplan, albeit not always from a central role, was Gabriel Jesus. Guardiola has long lauded the Brazilian’s ability to harry opposition defenders and he forced one mistake from Raphael Varane in the first half to set up Sterling’s opener before latching on to another in the second to see the Blues through.
His goal at the Etihad also saw him become just the second player, after Ruud van Nistelrooy, to score for an English club in both legs of a Champions League tie against Real Madrid. If his work for the team is always appreciated, Sterling also praised his composure in front of goal.
“Against Real it was important to run our socks off and he’s always at the top of the list for doing that,” he said. “He works for the team and always contributes. He’s been involved with both goals and I’m really pleased for him.
“We’ve got two great strikers at this club. Both strikers score goals and when you play with either one of them you know what to expect from each of them.”