Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola insists his team need a ‘better game plan’ if they are to overcome Real Madrid and reach the Champions League final.
The tie is perfectly balanced following last week’s 1-1 draw at the Santiago Bernabéu, with Kevin De Bruyne making sure his team have less work to do in the return leg at the Etihad.
His second half equaliser cancelled out Vinícius Júnior’s world class strike that gave Madrid the lead at half-time.
If the stakes weren’t high enough, City are also looking at avenging last year’s 6-5 aggregate defeat to Los Blancos in the semi-finals.
All of this has created a whirlwind of emotion inside the dressing room, and Guardiola knows this.
“Emotion is there and will be high. Has to be high. Just this is not going to beat a team like RM. We need a bit better game plan, adjust a little bit. Create more chances or be our strikers - get more balls in easy positions. Know their transitions, quality. We play against RM in the semi of the CL, the toughest opponents. It's a challenge. We go for it,” he said.
The Catalan, who has been accused of overthinking big games in the past, has assured the masses that he will not dictate from the norm tomorrow evening.
“Hopefully you can see tomorrow. I cannot tell you, otherwise Carlo (Ancelotti) will hear. I'm not overthinking tomorrow, don't worry guys. Nothing different to the past, just to be more fluid and play a bit better.”
“If we had the game last year [4-3] I'd sign right now. I don't think will happen, the game dictates. The fluency, when you have the ball, how you react. This competition is uncertain things you cannot control. We will see, have a plan and try to secure it. Adapt as much as possible,” he added.
Tomorrow will play out with whispers of the word ‘treble’ in the winds in Manchester. City are just one game from the Premier League title and they are into the FA Cup final, where they will face local rivals Manchester United.
Guardiola insists that the treble charge has arrived at the right time, but he is telling everyone of his players to take the next few weeks in their stride.
“We arrive really good, we're in the FA Cup final, one game from PL, but we have to play better than Madrid. We have to perform well, not just the desire. Relax, only have to do what we have done many years. This is what we have to do, not just the desire to reach the final. We have to be better than the Bernabeu to get the final”.
