d b a
Published on: Thursday, March 7, 2024 – 12:49 PM | Last updated: Thursday, March 7, 2024 – 12:49 PM
Spanish coach Pep Guardiola, coach of Manchester City, attributed the reason for the many changes he made during the confrontation against FC Copenhagen on Wednesday evening in the second leg of the round of sixteen of the Champions League, to the fatigue factor that affected many of the players who participated in the Manchester derby last Sunday in the league. English.
Guardiola made seven changes in the starting lineup against Copenhagen, then brought in some of the club’s academy players during the second half to avoid any other player being exhausted before the decisive confrontation at Liverpool Stadium next Sunday.
Guardiola said after the match, “I went into the match against Luton Town in the FA Cup without thinking about the Manchester United match, and we played today’s match and we needed a lot of energy.”
He added, “I know how tired and exhausted some of the players were to play three days after the United match… although it is customary to play your local league match on Saturday when you participate in the Champions League on Wednesday, but we played the derby match on Sunday, not Saturday.”
Manchester City’s official website quoted Guardiola as saying, “So I needed players who were in top shape, people who could endure. We were lucky, lucky to score two goals early. That helped us a lot because this competition is very difficult and dangerous.”
The Spanish coach noted, “We talked and asked the players to be calm and not lose their nerve. We scored two goals and this helped us a lot. I told the players after the match that we qualified against a very difficult team.”