Pep Guardiola has defended his lack of substitutions in Manchester City's Champions League draw at RB Leipzig on Wednesday.
City dominated the first half at Leipzig, but the hosts hit back to earn a deserved draw going into next month's second leg at the Etihad. While Guardiola's system ensured City had control of the game, Leipzig pushed more aggressively after the break, got their goal, and enforced a more open contest.
Without Kevin De Bruyne and Aymeric Laporte, City's only realistic options to change things off a youthful-looking bench were Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez, but Guardiola opted to play the whole game with the 11 players who started.
"I have the opportunity to have five substitutions, I am the manager I apply and take it if I want," he said in a sarcastic tone.
"It doesn't mean if I have the substitutions I have to do the substitutions. I'm a so good manager to decide what I have to do or not."
Guardiola did admit to nearly bringing on Foden after Josko Gvardiol's second-half equaliser, but City rallied immediately after, prompting the manager to stick with his starting XI for the rest of the contest.
He explained: "I was really pleased with what I was seeing. With Phil to have this talent to do this, after the goal I thought immediately to bring Phil but we took the game in our hands.
"With this control. Because they play with six upfront. Two fullbacks as wingers, four players incredible runners. Those positions you need control. That's why the players we had, Gundogan, Riyad [Mahrez], you need extra passes.
"Especially in the first leg, maybe second leg I decide to be crazy and play nine strikers and make up and downs. In this game I felt, I've been in this country and I need this type of control. Up and downs, it's open, one or two actions from Gundo to give the ball to Erling they block it. These situations, German teams are better than us."
In another interview, Guardiola pointed to Bernardo Silva as giving him the control in midfield he sought to control Leipzig's attackers, as City became the first team since Manchester United in 2018 to fail to make a single substitution in a Champions League game.
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