Rio Ferdinand says he received a text from Pep Guardiola which unpacked his faith in his squad just hours before Manchester City thrashed Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final.
A double from Bernardo Silva before Manuel Akanji's deflected header and a stoppage-time Julian Alvarez strike saw the Blues cruise past the trophy holders to reach their second European final in three years.
Guardiola has stayed sombre when being frequently asked about his Champions League dream with City but he was an animated figure on the touchline against Real, and passionately celebrated each goal.
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Rio Ferdinand was on punditry duty for BT Sport and revealed he had wished Guardiola good luck earlier in the day. At full-time, the City boss pointed to the former Manchester United man shouting ‘I told you!’ with a smile.
When asked about the texts, Ferdinand explained: “He text me, Pep Guardiola, before the game. I said ‘good luck’, and he text me saying ‘believe me we beat them two years ago, we’ll beat them again. Believe’.
“I just thought, the conviction and confidence he had - that was two or three hours before the game. He’s sending me a text like that. That is pure confidence in the detail he’s probably gone through during the lead-up to this game and the confidence he has in those players.”
Ferdinand waxed lyrical about the dominance of City and how they looked so easy against the defending champions, praising one defender in particular.
He added: “It’s more the way they have got here. They have just destroyed, battered, pulverised a giant of European football.
“A team that has won multiple Champions Leagues. They’ve done it at a canter, with ease and loads in the tank without even sweating.
“Kyle Walker - we talk about individual battles - he came out here today and said I am going to dominate a world-class footballer (Vinicius Jr). You've got to have character to do that.”
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