Pep Guardiola makes surprising Real Madrid claim amid qualification from the UCL group stage after four games.
With two games remaining, Real Madrid has qualified for the UEFA Champions League knockout round. For a while, it appeared as though Carlo Ancelotti’s team would be given a defeat by Shakhtar Donetsk, but Antonio Rudiger’s amazing strike in stoppage time saved a tie and a point for his team.
Of course, Real Madrid is the reigning champion and will aim to win the trophy with the huge ears a second time. When Zinedine Zidane’s team miraculously won the Champions League three seasons in a row, they became the only club in history to accomplish the feat.
Based on early season form, they have been joined by Manchester City as the favourites to win the Champions League this season. In Erling Haaland, the Premier League side have a player who seems unstoppable at the moment.
However, despite being one of the favorites to win the championship for the past five years, Pep Guardiola’s team has never done so. According to Marca, when asked by a Viaplay reporter to give an explanation for why his squad did not succeed in winning the Champions League, the City manager said:
Because Real Madrid is there.
The Champions League is, in actuality, a highly special competition. While a lot of luck is involved, it is also considerably harder to win than a league in many aspects.
No of how well you had been performing up until that point, just one terrible day at work will eliminate you, just like in any knockout tournament.
Guardiola undoubtedly remembers how close his Manchester City team came to winning the championship last season until Real Madrid absolutely turned the tables on them in the last minutes of the semifinals.
