Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is targeting Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich.
The Sun says the Germany international is seen as a potential replacement for Ilkay Gundogan.
The City captain comes off contract at the end of next month.
And Guardiola is keen on Kimmich as a replacement, having worked with the midfielder when in charge of Bayern.
A swap involving Joao Cancelo, currently on-loan at Bayern, has been mooted.
Manchester City were perfectly prepared with the right mix of calmness and tension for their Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid, manager Pep Guardiola said on Wednesday.
The English champions dismantled the holders 4-0 with a ruthless display to secure a 5-1 aggregate win.
The result meant Manchester City secured a final berth against Inter Milan where they will bid to win European club soccer’s most prestigious trophy for the first time.
It was sweet revenge for a painful semi-final loss to Real 12 months ago.
“I had the feeling these last days that we had a mix of calm and tension to play these type of games.
“And after 10 or 15 minutes, I had the feeling that all the pain that we had, what happened last season . . . it was really tough, losing the way we lost and I think in the moment we had to swallow poison,” Guardiola told reporters.
Real Madrid knocked Manchester City out 12 months ago 6-5 on aggregate after an extraordinary late comeback.
“In sport, obviously you have another chance and when the draw was Madrid, I said, ‘Yeah, I want it’,” Guardiola said.
Bernardo Silva netted a first-half double to put City in control and, after Erling Haaland failed to convert two gilt-edged chances, Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez completed the rout.
Real Madrid arrived with history on their side as title-holders and record 14-times European champions.
But Manchester City, buoyed by an unbeaten 23-game run in all competitions, had not lost in 26 Champions League matches at the Etihad Stadium, which was a writhing sea of sky blue for the visit of the Spanish giants.
Manchester City had played the 2021 semi-final against Paris St Germain in Manchester with no fans in attendance due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This time the players stayed on the pitch long after the final whistle to celebrate, with Haaland wearing a Norwegian flag draped around his shoulders.
“(Tonight was) much, much better,” Guardiola said. “I felt, I don’t know why, you smelled that the team was ready to compete at the level that they competed today.”
City are three wins away from a treble as they play Manchester United in the FA Cup final on June 3 and could win the Premier League as early as Saturday.
“We’re closer. This season is really really good, what we’ve really done already.
“The pleasure, the joy, how much we have fun this season again and again. We make happy our fans, all around the world watching us, they see a good team playing. This is the biggest compliment,” Guardiola said.
Guardiola added that the players, staff and families would gather for a team breakfast before enjoying a day off on Thursday ahead of their preparations for their final push to clinch the English League title.
Victory over Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul on June 10 would secure the one trophy Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Mansour has craved since buying Manchester City in 2008.
Manchester City lost to Chelsea two years ago in their only previous appearance in the final.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says his players must on Tuesday avoid falling into the trap of trying to avenge last year’s UEFA Champions League semi-final defeat to Real Madrid.
Both teams will meet on Tuesday at the same stage of the tournament, with Manchester City away in the first leg in Madrid.
Guardiola was visibly upset with a comment by his midfielder Rodri earlier in their press conference at Santiago Bernabeu earlier on Monday.
He had said that he was looking forward to “a chance for revenge” against Real Madrid.
“It will be a huge mistake to think we are here for revenge, we are not! We must face it as another opportunity (to reach the final),” Guardiola told a news conference later on Monday.
“We are here to get a good result because everything will be decided in Manchester, not here.
“What happened last season happened, period. This is another opportunity, nothing more.
“We come with the mentality of trying again, knowing that to achieve it, we have to be better.
“The best lesson we can take from last season is that we are not coming here for revenge, but for a good result. And to have the final open for Manchester.”
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti spoke earlier on Monday about the importance of going into the second leg with a mental edge.
Asked about the comments, Guardiola was once again uneasy, disagreeing with his opposite number.
“Last year we got here with a huge mental edge after winning well (in) the first leg. But look what happened,” Guardiola said.
“Ferland Mendy saved a ball off the goalline and what happened still happened. Those are the details that take you to a final or not.
“There is a cross that maybe we should have made another pass, maybe we should have taken better care of the possession. I don’t know.
“We have to put in a great performance in both matches, otherwise it will be very difficult.”
After beating Real Madrid 4-3 in a thriller in the first-leg last year in Manchester, Manchester City saw the Spanish giants fight back from the brink of elimination.
They beat them 3-1 after extra time to get to the final.
“When I arrived at Manchester City I thought I would win the Champions League in the first year, then in the next one… and the one after that.
“And the last one, the same thing. That’s my mentality. And here we are, we are here to try again,” Guardiola said.
“What I wouldn’t like is a team that wins the Champions League once and then falls behind in the league or spends 10 years falling.
“No, we have to be stable. We are looking for something like Real Madrid, FC Barcelona or Liverpool, to always be there. That is a healthy club.
“I’m an FC Barcelona fan and it took Barça a long time to reach a final. Everything is a process and the importance is stability.”
A magnanimous gesture by Manchester city’s goal-machine Erling Haaland left Pep Guardiola fuming on Saturday.
This was after the Norwegian striker ignored his manager’s instructions to take a penalty kick and handed the ball to teammate Ilkay Gundogan.
The German midfielder had scored a first-half brace to put the English Premier League leaders 2-0 up against Leeds United.
But Guardiola yelled from the sidelines for the 22-year-old Haaland to take the penalty kick they had been awarded in the closing minutes.
However, Haaland, who has already scored a Premier League single season record of 35 goals, glanced at Guardiola before handing the ball to Gundogan for him to complete a hat-trick.
It was a move that sent the Spanish manager into fits of rage, especially as Gundogan’s effort was pushed aside by a diving goalkeeper Joel Robles.
“If Gundo scores, everyone is ‘OK, hat-trick, well done’,” Guardiola said following Manchester City’s 2-1 victory.
“But a taker is a taker. At 2-0, this is a business, not a situation where we cannot forget it.”
The 32-year-old Gundogan felt the heat from Guardiola when he stepped up to the penalty kick spot.
“First he showed to Erling that he was quite mad about that, and then also he had a go at me,” Gundogan told reporters. “It is what it is at the end.
“The moment Erling grabbed the ball, I was sure he was going to take it but he looked out for me.
“I checked with him a few times to make sure he was sure. He was certain to hand the ball to me. I was confident to score.”
Haaland had several excellent scoring chances, with a shot that bounced off the crossbar and another that glanced off the post.
With Manchester City in pursuit of their third successive Premier League title, and the win having extended their lead over second-placed Arsenal to four points, Guardiola’s mood somewhat later improved.
“The performance was excellent. We played really, really good,” the Spaniard, whose side has four league games left this season, said by the time he met reporters post-game.
“Who knows if Erling takes the penalty kick and misses it? What happens if Gundo takes the penalty kick and score? So, the question is 2-0, who is the taker? The taker is Erling.
“Second point is that is how Erling is as a person. He is incredible and wants to score goals, but at the same time, the team, the mates are important.
“He had chances to score goals, he didn’t convert, but he played an outstanding game.
“But a taker is a taker. At 2-0, this is a business, not a situation where we cannot forget it.
“Especially in England, it never is over and I want the taker who has more routine, who is a specialist, to take it.”
Treble-chasing Manchester City next head to Real Madrid for the first leg of their 2022/2023 UEFA Champions League semi-final fixture on Tuesday.
NAN
Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, has revealed why no club has ever sacked him all through his managerial career.
According to the Spanish gaffer, every team he has coached never disappoints because they win a lot of games.
He made the revelation known while reacting to the fact that 12 Premier League bosses have lost their jobs this season.
Graham Potter and Brendan Rodgers were the latest to be fired last Sunday.
Potter was dismissed as Chelsea boss after six months in charge, with the Blues sitting in 11th place in the Premier League.
His sacking came hours after Rodgers’ four-year stint at Leicester ended with the Foxes wallowing in the relegation zone.
Guardiola decided to step down from his previous jobs at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
“I will tell you a secret. We win games. If we don’t win games, I would be sacked. It’s not because my hair is better than the other ones. I’m not sacked because we win a lot of games,” Guardiola told reporters on Friday.
Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola has said that the Southampton game is very crucial to his side.
According to him, Arsenal will emerge champions if they drop points in tomorrow’s game against Southampton at Saint Mary’s Stadium.
Guardiola is going neck-to-neck with his former assistant Mikel Arteta for the title this season.
Ahead of Game Week 30, Arsenal is top with 72 points, eight more than City who has an outstanding fixture.
The champions travel to Southampton in Saturday’s late kick-off and Guardiola has urged his squad to stay focused.
When asked about the title race with Arsenal, he replied: “I can’t talk about Arsenal now.
“Our game against them is in 10 days or two weeks.
“But if we drop points before then, Arsenal will be champions.”
Mesut Ozil has revealed why he chose Real Madrid over Barcelona when leaving Werder Bremen.
At the age of 34, Ozil announced his retirement on March 22, 2023.
He told Marca: “It was a decision between Real Madrid and Barcelona. And in the end it was not a matter of money.
“I don’t know if this is known, but I visited Madrid and Barcelona at that time and the difference was José Mourinho. Mou gave me a VIP visit to Real Madrid. He took me to see the stadium and all the trophies they had won. That gave me goosebumps.
“The visit to Barcelona was less enthusiastic and what was more disappointing is that Pep Guardiola didn’t bother to meet me. Before that trip I really liked Barcelona’s style of football and I could really imagine playing with them, but Madrid went all out. So José Mourinho was without a doubt the most important factor in my decision.
“After my visits, my decision was one hundred percent clear: I wanted to be a Madridista.”
Ozil also said: “The Madrid fans are really incredible. Even ten years after leaving Madrid, I continue to receive spectacular support and affection from the fans. It’s really amazing. I think we spent three very good years together, three years in which the fans enjoyed themselves and saw that I gave everything for the club. I’m going to be honest, I didn’t expect this support to continue for so long, so I can only thank the madridistas.”
Manchester City have Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta to succeed Pep Guardiola should the Catalan depart.
City are keeping tabs on Arteta, in case Guardiola leaves the club, says Four Four Two.
Guardiola’s future at the Etihad appears uncertain after the Premier League charged City with breaching financial regulations.
The Spaniard previously said he would quick the club over financial rule-breaking.
And Arteta is a potential replacement.
Arteta spent time as assistant coach at the Etihad under Guardiola before taking over at Arsenal.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola admitted frustration with his players after defeat at Tottenham.
Spurs won 1-0 on Sunday night thanks to Harry Kane’s lone goal.
Guardiola said: “We started really well, as usually happens against Tottenham home and away, but after we made a mistake they punished us – 1-0 down it is different, we had chances, and of course when we lose balls in transition with Kulusevski and Son, it is not easy. We dropped three points.
“But it is not easy when 10 players defend, and sit back a little bit more than in the Etihad two weeks ago. We played good, started well and missed maybe the last pass, to shoot.
“Sooner or later it is going to change, but it is strange we haven’t scored one goal, we have missed penalties in the past. To find an explanation is not easy.
“We found the positions, made good balls to the channels, but missed the last action up front.
“We are not in the position to think about being champions, just the next game, Aston Villa, we will prepare well and play our game as best as possible.
“Tottenham has a fantastic team and squad and they punish you. They have a lot of quality up front and don’t need much with transitions, set pieces, give a lot of credit to them.”
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola took aim at his players and the home support after last night’s 4-2 win against Tottenham.
Guardiola criticised almost every single member of his squad by name after the 4-2 victory and was insistent that they are nowhere near challenging Arsenal for the Premier League title.
The defending champions were booed off at half time, which appeared to upset the 52-year-old, and he suggested the club had become complacent with success.
“Playing with this lack of passion, this season I can announce we are not going to win anything,” Guardiola said.
“[We lacked] guts, passion, fire, desire to win from minute one. The same with the fans, they are silent for 45 minutes. I want my fans back. The fans have to shout.
“They booed because we were losing, but not because we played bad. We played good. We were better. They booed because we were losing, but maybe it’s like our team.
“Maybe they’re too comfortable because we have won four Premier Leagues in five years. After we scored a goal they react, but tsch, that is not the point.
“I don’t recognise my team, they [previously] had the passion and desire to run. Do you think we are going to chase the gap to Arsenal the way we are playing? No way.”
Guardiola also said: “I want a reaction from the whole club – everyone. We are a happy flowers organisation. I don’t want happy flowers. I want to beat Arsenal. Play this way and Arsenal will destroy us.
“We are far away from the team we had in previous seasons. Do you think this comeback will happen every time? It won’t.
“Today we were lucky. If we want to win something or compete – but complaining, complaining, complaining – no chance we will win anything.
“There is something in the clouds, that you cannot express, that we just don’t have.”