Pep Guardiola believes Manchester City can reach the Champions League final even if they play poorly, arguing that the unpredictable nature of football makes their semi-final against Real Madrid difficult to anticipate.
After a first leg in which City shone in attack and could have scored more goals, City takes a 4-3 lead to the Bernabeu, but Guardiola, who has lost five Champions League semi-finals in his time as manager of Barcelona and Bayern Munich, understands that such situations are not always logical."We can play a lot worse than we did last week and still win," Guardiola stated. "No one knows because football is unpredictably unpredictable." I have no idea what will happen tomorrow. There are times when you train extremely poorly and deliver an outstanding performance."
City finished second in the competition last year and have appeared in the knockout stages on several occasions throughout Guardiola's tenure. He believes their experience will be beneficial, but admits that nothing is guaranteed in terms of improvement."There will be guys who get up in the morning and wonder how their mood and shape are, and many things that experience hasn't helped," he continued. We've been there before, and we've been there a lot in the last few years in these major games and scenarios...
"In those terms, we've been here, and [it might assist] when you've won and been there." It helps if you believe I've been there and know how to deal with the problem, but it's not a guarantee. It doesn't mean we'll play well or perform well just because we've been there before.Real will go to the final if they play at their best, according to Luka Modric, and Guardiola added: "Every club believes that if they play their best, they have a better chance of beating their opponent." That's quite typical. That's what we believe as well."
Kyle Walker has returned to the squad following an ankle injury suffered against Atletico Madrid, and Guardiola will make a late decision on whether or not to select the right defender.He's going on a trip, and we'll make a decision tomorrow," he said. "He was out of training for three weeks, but I'm glad he's back."
Joao Cancelo, who was suspended for the first leg while John Stones and subsequently Fernandinho played at right back, is the other option. Guardiola stated, "Joao is without a doubt." "We'll see how Kyle feels tomorrow and how he trains this afternoon.
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