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Pep Guardiola did not hold back his honest assessment of Manchester City’s Champions League hopes this season.
Manchester City saved their Champions League season with a 3-1 victory over Club Brugge on the final day of the Champions League league phase. The reigning English champions gave the Etihad plenty to cheer about in the second half, scoring three goals to mount their comeback in the must-win fixture.
Instead of riding the high, though, Guardiola already has his sights set on the knockout stage and he does not like what he sees. City will face either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich in the knockout phase playoffs in February. Either side will be a tough challenge for a City team that only won three of their league phase matches this season.
When asked if he could see his side getting past their next opponents and going all the way in the competition, Guardiola responded, “Right now, no. The year that we won, I always thought we were going to win the Champions League.”
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“The reality is the reality. They have more experience than us. Madrid maybe struggled but the last games are back in the results, the way they played,” he continued. “Bayern Munich played an incredible season. If we had to play tomorrow it would be difficult. In two weeks, I don’t know the position we’ll be in and the players [we’ll have].”
City has dealt with an injury crisis for most of the 2024-25 season that started with losing Rodri in September. Guardiola’s backline has especially taken a hit recently. Kyle Walker made the move to AC Milan and Rúben Dias and Nathan Aké are both injured. New signing Abdukodir Khusanov is an option, but he failed to impress in his debut against Chelsea, gifting the Blues their lone goal inside of three minutes.
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