Pep Guardiola massively regretted the one time he asked his player for advice after “uncharacteristic wobble”
Pep Guardiola had an ‘uncharacteristic wobble’ during a crunch Champions League tie, resulting in a crushing defeat, claims one of his former players.
Guardiola has won the Champions League as a manager at both Barcelona and Manchester City following last season’s success.
But the 53-year-old failed to win the prestigious trophy during his time at Bayern Munich.
In his first season at the helm of the German giants, Guardiola faced his old faces Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final.
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He was under enormous pressure from the board as Jupp Heynckes had won the trophy the season before.
In the first leg, Bayern lost 1-0 at the Bernabeu despite dominating possession.
Ahead of the second leg, Guardiola turned to his players for advice in what was described as an ‘uncharacteristic wobble’ by Manuel Neuer.
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The team fed back that they would like to adopt an attacking approach, but the plan backfired as they ended up losing 4-0 at home.
The Spanish giants, who went onto win the competition, raced into a four-goal aggregate lead before the break. Cristiano Ronaldo scored his second goal of the night one minute from time to secure a 5-0 victory.
Pep Guardiola on the touchline against Carlo Ancelotti. Image: Getty
Neuer said: “We strayed from the philosophy we’d had all year. But then we realised we shouldn’t have done it. He didn’t listen to himself and asked us too much.”
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According to Barcelona treasurer Xavier Sala-i-Martin, this was a turning point as Guardiola decided he would from then on trust in his own footballing ideas,
It’s worked out since for Guardiola, who joined Man City for the start of the 2016/17 season.
He’s won an impressive five Premier League titles during his spell at the Etihad and the illustrious Champions League in their treble-winning campaign last season.
His regret at Bayern has moulded the manager he is today, with Man City reaping the rewards.
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