Pep Guardiola has challenged his reshaped Manchester City team to prove they can thrive against Real Madrid at the Bernabéu.
The City manager goes back to one of Europe’s grandest venues for the Champions League game on Wednesday night without many of the stalwarts who have been at the heart of the numerous battles between the clubs in recent years.
Guardiola reported that John Stones was out because of injury – along with Rodri – while players such as Ederson, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gündoğan and Kyle Walker have departed. As ever, there was an intense focus on Guardiola, the former Barcelona player and manager, when he arrived to preview the match although the bigger story here is the future of the Madrid manager, Xabi Alonso.
Alonso has presided over a disastrous run of two wins in seven matches in all competitions, which has resulted in a 12-point swing with Barcelona in La Liga; Madrid’s rivals are now four points clear at the top. Alonso desperately needs a result against City; a defeat could have grave consequences for him.
Guardiola sought to turn the focus inwards. He stressed that his side was in a transitional phase, which began with the £185m outlay on signings last January and continued into the summer. It was a time, he suggested, for some of his new players to grow.
“We have lost important players … De Bruyne, Gundo, Walker; Stones and Rodri are not here,” the City manager said. “Many players are new and they have to experience it on these stages – and know that for the next time, I have done it and can do it again. It’s always a good place to come to prove yourself.”
The City captain, Bernardo Silva, was asked whether the game could serve as a barometer of the team’s progress. “Maybe, yes,” he replied. “It is just one more game but it’s definitely a very good test in this environment. It’s a very different [City] team because the club made the decision to change a lot of players and give a new dynamic. It’s a team full of potential and energy.”
This will be the 11th Champions League meeting of these teams in seven seasons. The previous 10 encounters were all two-legged ties in the knockout rounds, Madrid progressing three times; City two. The Alonso storyline provided the greatest drama and Guardiola said he had sympathy for his one-time Bayern Munich player, telling a packed press conference at the Bernabeu that he “loved” him.
At one point, Guardiola said Alonso “should pee with his own” – in other words, take control of his own destiny. Guardiola said: “Barcelona and Madrid are the toughest clubs to be a manager … the pressure and environment. If I’d done last season [with City] here, I would’ve been sacked. Of course, Xabi is capable of doing what is required.”
Guardiola also talked about the problem of the Madrid media knowing everything that happened in the dressing room. He added: “It depends on what power the hierarchy want to give. If they want to give it to the manager, the manager has the power. If they give it to the players, the players have it.”
Despite the overall situation, Alonso’s team do have four wins out of five in the Champions League. City are keen to bounce back from the 2-0 home defeat against Bayer Leverkusen in their previous game in the competition when Guardiola made 10 changes to his lineup and felt that many of the replacements lacked the confidence to express themselves.
