.
City left it until the final matchday to secure progress from the inaugural league phase, coming from behind to beat Club Brugge 3-1.
That meant a 22nd-place finish for Pep Guardiola’s side and the seedings for Friday’s draw will pair City or Celtic with either Real Madrid or Bayern next month.
En route to treble glory in 2022/23, City swatted aside Bayern 4-1 on aggregate in the quarterfinals, while their 4-0 second-leg demolition of Real Madrid at the Etihad Stadium arguably stands as the high watermark of Guardiola’s decorated time in charge.
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Real Madrid gained revenge with a quarterfinal shoot-out triumph last season, and City’s decline from their dominant levels this term remains apparent, despite run of one defeat in their past nine matches across all competitions.
Nevertheless, Akanji remains confident a fit and firing City can take down any team in their path.
“Obviously they’re not the teams you want to face, but whoever it is, we’re looking forward to the challenge and I think we can beat every team in Europe,” he said. “We’re definitely ready.”
City’s league phase campaign almost fell apart entirely, as they went winless in four matches, despite leading 1-0 at Sporting CP, 3-0 against Feyenoord and 2-0 last week at Paris Saint-Germain.
Akanji is unconcerned over whether some of the shine has come off City’s heavyweight reputation, aware that under-estimation from Real Madrid or Bayern Munich could play into their hands.
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“I don’t know what’s going on in their heads,” he said. “I think we can beat every team in Europe so …
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