A new record for Pep Guardiola. A few days after taking part in the 1000th game of his career as a coach against Liverpool on November 9 (3-0), the Manchester City technician is set to take part in his 100th Champions League game on the Skyblues bench on Tuesday against Bayer Leverkusen (21:00).
“I realize I’m getting old,” he joked at a press conference on Monday. “Every weekend there is a new event to celebrate (in his career)”, quipped the 54-year-old Catalan, who has been at the club since 2016 and won Europe’s most prestigious competition in 2023.
“Pretty good,” commented Guardiola, serious again. “It means every season we are there.(…) It is a very big competition, very special for the players, they love it, as do the coaches and everyone,” he added.
“Very valuable experience”
“Competing against the best teams in Europe is a very enriching experience”, and “for the club, in terms of reputation, prestige, finances, it is very important”, explains the former FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach.
In C1 this season, Manchester City recorded three wins and a draw, in Monaco, which allowed it to qualify halfway to appear in the Top 8 of the league phase, directly qualifying for the last 16 of the Champions League.
“Now we start the last four games: two at home, two away. Tomorrow (Tuesday), against the third in the Bundesliga, it is a very important game to achieve our goal, finishing in the top eight,” he commented.
Defensive midfielders Rodri and Mateo Kovacic, who are injured, will not be returned for Bayer’s welcome. On the European stage, Leverkusen is in a bad position with only one win, two draws and one heavy defeat, 7-2 to PSG. However, Kasper Hjulmand’s players have started a good dynamic for several weeks in the Bundesliga.
