Did Pep Guardiola get his team selection wrong at Tottenham?
By John Wozniak
Manchester City have got it all to do next week at the Etihad Stadium, as the club search for a route to the Champions League semi-finals. Pep Guardiola has just under seven days to assess how best to approach a vital game in City‘s quest for the quadruple.
Manchester City head into the second leg of their Champions League tie against Tottenham needing a two-goal advantage to advance to the semi-finals. Pep Guardiola opted to leave two of his stars out of the Manchester City starting XI. Guardiola left both Leroy Sané and Kevin De Bruyne on the bench, a decision that could haunt the Spaniard.
Guardiola has won six out of 26 knockout matches away from home in the Champions Leagues – (via squawka).
At the time of writing, Sané has the most assists in the Champions League (five) – yet, he and De Bruyne had to be content with a two-minute spell at the end of game time. Guardiola will argue that there are at least another 90 minutes of football to play, but it’s Tottenham who have the advantage.
Having the luxury of a big squad can be a double-edge sword. It’s much easier to select a starting XI when there isn‘t a lot of competition for places. City have an abundance of talent at their disposal, it could be one of the reasons why Sané has been a regular on the bench for City since February. The Germany international hasn’t started in either of City‘s previous two games, yet he’s arguably one of the best forward players at the club. With three assists and a goal, The City No.19 was the key player in the club’s 7-0 annihilation of Schalke in the round of 16.
City midfielder, Ilkay Gündogan made a bold statement to Sky Deutschland, he was clearly upset about the defeat to Spurs.
"We were not brave enough in the game and we made a lot of simple mistakes. I have the feeling we are nervous in important Champions League games. We always make the wrong decisions (via transfermarkt.com)."
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Guardiola isn’t afraid to rotate his players, it’s a strategy that has helped the club during their 14 game winning streak. On another day, City may have won the game at Tottenham, Sergio Agüero may have converted from the penalty spot and we would not put Guardiola’s selection into question. It’s difficult to criticise City, but in a week’s time, we could be talking about an opportunity missed. Guardiola has won six out of 26 knockout matches away from home in the Champions Leagues, something might have to change if City wants to become the Kings of Europe.