Guardiola: "A 3-0 Result is Better Than 4-0... Real Madrid Had Three Chances and Scored Three Goals"
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola acknowledged the difficult task facing his team after their 3-0 defeat to Real Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League last 16, asserting that his side would try to turn the tables in the return leg.
Guardiola stated after the match: "The result is clear, but we still have another 90 minutes. I have a feeling the performance wasn't that bad. In the first half, they had three chances and scored three goals from them. They are always dangerous in attacking transitions. In contrast, we reached the final third many times, even in the second half, but we lacked the final touch."
The City coach discussed the reason for the lack of attacking effectiveness, saying: "When you reach the final third and there are four or five players inside the box, it requires a good pass, and we had those opportunities. If we had scored a goal, our morale would have risen. We lacked that final touch. Perhaps when I watch the game later, I won't like what I saw, but I have a feeling the performance wasn't as bad as it seems."
He also considered avoiding a fourth goal from the penalty (missed by Vinicius) to be relatively important, adding: "With three goals, it's difficult; imagine if it were four. But we will play the second leg in front of our fans, and we will see what we can do to try and surprise them."
He added: "3-0 is better than 4-0, of course. Sometimes it's difficult to control transitions when we lose the ball and they attack quickly. Despite that, I think we played fairly well. We reached the final third many times through Doku, but we lacked the final touch. We didn't defend well for the first goal."
Guardiola concluded by acknowledging the difficulty of overturning the result, stating: "Our chances are not great, but we will try. We know the task is very complicated, but we will try with our fans. We can perform better."
The return leg between the two teams is scheduled for next Tuesday (20:00), where Manchester City will aim for a strong comeback against Real Madrid to overturn their heavy first-leg defeat.
