Manchester City will take on Real Madrid in the next round of the Champions League draw and Pep Guardiola has revealed why playing them so many times has helped his team.
The Champions League last 16 draw has taken place and Manchester City have been paired against Real Madrid.
This will not be the first time the two European heavyweights have clashed this season. Man City claimed a 2-1 victory at the Bernabeu during the league phase and there have been a number of meetings between them in the past
However, Real Madrid will have a different manager in their dugout after sacking Xabi Alonso, so there will be fresh belief that the La Liga side can get a result.
Pep Guardiola insists Man City have benefitted from playing Real Madrid in the past
Manchester City and Real Madrid’s battles are becoming somewhat of an annual occasion, which can be both a positive and a negative.
On the one hand, playing one of the greatest teams in Europe each season can help the team improve. Yet on the other, it could mean suffering an early Champions League exit, which was the case for Man City last season.
During his press conference, Guardiola was asked about how helpful it is to have gained experience playing against Real Madrid on so many occasions.
He responded: “For our club, as much as you play against the best teams in the whole history of this competition, you learn and improve and you are better in the future.”
Man City must learn from their past failures
Manchester City have knocked Real Madrid out of the Champions League on two separate occasions, but the Spanish outfit still have a better head-to-head record overall.
Therefore, Guardiola must take on board the lessons he has learned to overcome Madrid and reach the quarter-finals of the competition.
Victory in the last 16 could see Man City face Bayern Munich in the quarters and reigning champions PSG in the semis, so it is not about to get any easier.
City have to show that they have learnt and improved as Guardiola has said, in order to make it all the way to Budapest.
