Pep Guardiola admits that his side of Manchester City has not been good enough in the Champions League this season and says: “The best team has won” after they have been dumped from the competition by holders Real Madrid.
Kylian Mbappe scored a hat trick when real 3-1 winners walked out in the Bernabeu, and 6-3 on aggregated, to reach the round of 16.
Nico Gonzalez scored an injury time goal for the city, but it was little more than comforting one night when the Spanish giants re-confirmed their references as Champions League opportunities this period.
Full -time | Us #Ucl Campaign is coming to an end.
⚪️ 3-1 🤎 #Mancity pic.twitter.com/wlcjmuaqfi
– Manchester City (@Mancity) February 19, 2025
With Erling Haaland on the bank, Guardiola was missing on the other side of any real threat in the future and struggled to control the attacking front-line of the host.
“During the 180 minutes we have more than half an hour or 35 minutes, but the rest we struggled,” Guardiola told TNT Sports after the game.
‘Come here [the Bernabeu] a goal down and start with an injury to John [Stones] After the promotion for the first goal, it was a bit like what happened the entire season.
‘But it’s more difficult with the quality they [Real] to have.”
“After we admitted a goal in the first action, we did not defend properly. It’s increasingly difficult. We accept it, the best team has won, congratulations Real Madrid and now concentrate on the Premier League.
Asked about the quality of Mbappe, the city boss added: “It’s not just him, they have a fantastic team. They deserved to continue. We didn’t deserve it. It is the first year that we have not made a good Champions League season. We accept it and fight for the next season to be here again.
“We are lucky to be here in this competition for many years. We were so satisfied to win it once. We have accepted that we are not close enough to be there this season. We will see what will happen in the future. ‘
Next to City is the visit of Premier League leaders Liverpool on Sunday.
