It is a new day and a new chance for Manuel Pellegrini and the Citizens to make history and advance to the Quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League this Tuesday. But once again, it is up to Barcelona to allow it.
Manuel Pellegrini’s confidence in that his boys will take over the runners-up in La Liga is quite high this time around. Even though they expect the best version of Barcelona, the Chilean manager expects a much-improved version of his own team.
Barcelona is the team standing between the Citizens and their first-ever UCL Quarterfinals
For starters, there are only two competitions Man City has to focus on this time, instead of the four from last year (FA Cup, Capital One Cup, EPL, UCL). That will make the Citizens start the game with fresher legs than last February.
“We arrived at this stage after playing 19 games in two months, I don’t think it was our best moment,” the Chilean manager said.
After failing to advance in the UCL 12 months ago, the Citizens went on to win the Premier League. This time, they want more than just winning their domestic league.
“We always have the trust to continue to fight to the end. We didn’t play well but our team demonstrated the personality and quality against Bayern and Roma,” Pellegrini added.
Last year they lost in the aggregate by 4-1. Sergio “El Kun” Agüero is among the pieces that could make a difference between last year and this one. His coach considers him one of the top five footballers in the world.
Agüero only played 45 out of the 180 minutes in last year's games between both teams
“When he is 100% fit, it is very difficult to stop him,” the Citizens coach said.
Yaya Toure won’t be playing in the first leg as he currently serves a three-game suspension. Having him back for the game at Camp Nou is a positive sign for Manchester City.
“We can play without Yaya –also we played without him against Roma and Bayern and I think we have a good squad to replace him,” Pellegrini said.
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