Pep Guardiola has issued a clear ultimatum to his Manchester City squad ahead of tomorrow’s second leg, telling any players who doubt the possibility of a historic comeback to “stay at home.”
The Citizens are reeling from a bruising 3-0 defeat at the Santiago Bernabéu, where Federico Valverde’s hat-trick left City’s European ambitions on the brink of collapse.
Following a flat 1-1 draw with West Ham at the weekend, Guardiola made it clear he has no room for negativity in the dressing room.
“I prefer my players to be disappointed right now; I don’t like people laughing or being calm after a result like that,” Guardiola said.
“We have to accept that you can lose 3-0. It happened. But if you don’t believe we can turn this around at the Etihad, don’t show up. Stay at home. We need 11 players on that pitch who believe we still have a pulse.”
The fallout from the first leg has centered on Guardiola’s tactical gambles — specifically the decision to start Nico O’Reilly at left-back while leaving Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki on the bench. It’s a move that Alan Shearer believes backfired spectacularly.
Shearer shares surprise
“I was very surprised to see that many changes in Madrid, and even more surprised by how aggressively attacking the lineup was,” Shearer noted.
“Pep clearly felt he could go there and blow them away because they haven’t been great in La Liga, but Madrid in this competition are a different animal. They absolutely punished City. It could have been four or five if they hadn’t missed that penalty.”
Looking ahead to Tuesday night, Shearer believes the first fifteen minutes will dictate the season for the English champions. “It’s all about the first goal. If Real Madrid get it, it’s over. If City get it early and the Etihad starts rocking, then it’s game on.
But they have to be perfect. You can’t give this Madrid side the chances City gave them last week and expect to survive.”
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