Champions League: Pep Guardiola's reaction to the fourth consecutive clash with Real Madrid

Manchester City and Real Madrid will face each other for the fourth consecutive edition of the UEFA Champions League. The draw for the 'play-offs' resulted in a matchup between the Mancunians and the 'merengues', a tie that, for Pep Guardiola, "already feels like a derby". The Catalan coach eliminated the 'White House' in the round of 16 in the 2019-20 season and in the 'semis' of the 2022-23 season, while the whites prevailed in the 'semis' of the 2021-22 and the quarter-finals of the previous season.

"Both Bayern and Madrid were very tough; I hope we can arrive in good form with the first leg here and the second leg in Madrid. It was complicated to play against either of the two," began the Santpedor native. In that sense, Pep complained about the Premier League schedule, as the English league, unlike other competitions, does not give breaks to teams participating in European competitions.

"Don't ask me what is better, to play on Tuesday or Wednesday, to have an extra day. There are leagues that play on Friday before Champions to have an extra day of rest", Guardiola argued, who also reflected on the performance of the 'sky blue' team in the tournament. "We do not deserve to be in the final phase this season, winning only three matches and drawing another", he pointed out.

Pep Guardiola's record against Real Madrid in the Champions League

For the 'citizens' coach, this will be his seventh Champions tie against Real Madrid, the fifth with City. Pep eliminated the whites in the semifinals of the 2010-11 season with FC Barcelona. The culés won at the Santiago Bernabéu (0-2) and advanced to the Wembley final with an aggregate score of 3-1, the same score with which they would defeat Manchester United in London.

Three years later, in the 2013-14 season, Guardiola faced Madrid again, this time as coach of Bayern Munich. That season, the 'merengues' won by a resounding 5-0 on aggregate to advance to the Lisbon final, where they would lift the trophy against Atlético de Madrid (4-1 in extra time). The Santpedor native had his revenge in the round of 16 of the 2019-20 season, in a tie that had to be decided at the Etihad Stadium behind closed doors in August, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Manchester won both matches of the round of 16 (2-1) for an aggregate of 4-2, but would later fall surprisingly in the quarter-finals against Olympique de Lyon (1-3). Two years later, Real prevailed in the memorable 'semis' tie of the 2021-22 season with an aggregate score of 6-5. Carlo Ancelotti's team came back from two goals down in the last minutes of the second leg at the Bernabéu to end up winning in extra time by 3-1. The first leg went to the English side, with a thrilling 4-3.

The last two ties had mixed fortunes for the Mancunian team. In the 'semis' of the 2022-23 season, there was 'vendetta', with a brutal 5-1 aggregate after a 4-0 in England and a 1-1 in Madrid. In the 2023-24 season, the 'White House' prevailed again, this time in the quarter-finals after two draws (3-3 and 1-1) that forced the tie to be decided in a penalty shootout. Lunin was the hero for Madrid, who won 3-4. In their last three encounters, the winner of the tie has taken home the trophy.

This is how Pep Guardiola has fared against Real Madrid in the Champions League:

• Ties played: 6. Record: 3 ties favorable to Madrid and 3 to the Catalan coach.
• Matches played: 12. Victories for Pep: 5. Victories for Madrid: 3. Draws: 4.