Manchester City have fallen way below their usual standards during what has been a dismal season, and now Pep Guardiola is on the same page as his old foe Jose Mourinho
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Updated 22:32, 01 Apr 2025
Pep Guardiola is desperate to qualify for the Champions League with Manchester City
Pep Guardiola is desperate to qualify for the Champions League with Manchester City
(Image: Getty Images)
Pep Guardiola says qualifying for the Champions League will be one of his most satisfying feats at Manchester City – because of the problems they have faced this season.
City have played for most of the season without Ballon d'Or winner Rodri and have endured a series of injuries to key players – with goal machine Erling Haaland the latest to be sidelined. Against that backdrop, Guardiola said people have been proved wrong for taking for granted the fact City will qualify for the Champions League every season.
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Jose Mourinho claimed finishing second to City in 2018 – when he was at Manchester United – was one of his greatest managerial achievements, given the disparity between the two sides.
Guardiola may have won the Double and Treble at City, but the 54-year-old said qualifying for the Champions League – the 15th year in a row for the Blues - would be another major milestone for him.
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“Getting to the Champions League next season will be an incredible success, just for the fact of being there, for the problems that we've had,” said Guardiola. “I understand when Jose said this quote. For the club, for next season, we want to play in the Champions League.
“I said this before, a thousand million times, that people take for granted that City are going to be in the Champions League every season. I know how difficult it is. Otherwise, all the important teams would be in the Champions League every season, but it didn't happen like that.
Guardiola admits he now agrees with old foe Mourinho
Guardiola admits he now agrees with old foe Mourinho
“We're the only one in the last, I don't know how many years, who have been there. This kind of thing I give a lot of importance to, because it's the consistency I've always been looking for as a manager."
City, who host Leicester on Wednesday, are fifth in the Premier League, with just four points separating them from 10th-placed Bournemouth, in a congested battle for the coveted Champions League spots.
Reflecting on City's season, which has been sabotaged by injuries, Guardiola said: “It wasn't possible to do it in the Premier League this season and this is the worst Champions League campaign we've done since I've been here.
Erling Haaland had to come off after picking up an injury against Bournemouth
Manchester City's season has been affected by injuries, with Erling Haaland the latest player out
“But look at the FA Cup - seven semi-finals in a row. The people say 'Yeah, but you play teams in the Championship and in League One'.
“Maybe we won't win the FA Cup, but we've been there. In the Premier League, we've not been there, in the Champions League, we've not been there. But in the FA Cup, we've been there.
“This season has been so weird, so difficult. First of all, we didn't have the players. That's the main reason. After that, there are a lot of other factors, but especially this one.
Guardiola feels City's season has been 'weird'
Guardiola feels City's season has been 'weird'(Image: CameraSport via Getty Images)
“You can't compete in all of the competitions when you don't have the players. The Treble? We couldn't win the Treble without all the players. The Double? We couldn't win the Double without the players.
“And this season it happened. We had to play a lot without them now we're in the last moments [of the season] and we'll be good.
“We have nine games, nine finals, and we're going to try next season to be in the Champions League.”
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