Manchester City will host Real Madrid on Wednesday (17), at 4pm (Brasília time), in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals. After drawing 3-3 away from home in the first leg, Cityzens coach Pep Guardiola answered whether he is ‘afraid’ of the Spanish team and what he expects from the duel.
“I respect them (Real Madrid) a lot, but I’m not afraid. I praise them because I think so,” he said at a press conference.
The Spanish coach, who played for and coached Barcelona, knows that facing Real Madrid is difficult. More than the ‘shirt’, he is attentive to possible surprises from Italian coach Carlo Ancelotti.
“We have to be prepared, we will only know who is playing or how they are playing before the match. We have to do things better than in the first duel. They did well and we have to adjust things”, said Guardiola.
“They know us. We have to be attentive and find some surprises like Ancelotti did”, he added. The Italian used tactical variation, in a 4-4-2 formation with Brazilian Rodrygo on the left.
“It’s Real Madrid. They are very dangerous. They know we are going to try to win. We hope it will be a good game. Maybe Ancelotti will surprise us”, concluded Guardiola.
Will Vini Jr.’s ‘Antidote’ play?
In the meeting between Manchester City and Real Madrid in last year’s Champions League, which saw the Cityzens qualify for the final, full-back Kyle Walker stood out for nullifying and being a kind of ‘antidote’ to Vinicius Jr. — the Brazilian gave two assists in last week’s game.
Walker was injured in the last FIFA Data, in England’s friendly against Brazil, and was sidelined. He was on the bench against Luton Town, in the 33rd round of the Premier League, this weekend, but it is not yet possible to know whether he will be able to play against Real Madrid.
According to Guardiola, the full-back will be observed in the last training sessions to show how he behaves. “I’ll see if he feels good. Walker is important. Everyone knows his attributes and qualities. He’s special,” said the coach.