Pep Guardiola promised to thank Jose Mourinho after his former rival helped Manchester City advance to the Champions League knockout stages.
City accomplished their job, defeating Galatasaray 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium thanks to goals from Erling Haaland and Ryan Cherki. However, City’s spot in the top eight hung in the balance, with Real Madrid requiring an equaliser against Benfica to send Guardiola’s side into the play-offs.
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Until Benfica goalie Anatoliy Trubin came to the rescue with a remarkable late goal, securing a 4-2 victory for Mourinho’s side. The goal was sufficient to retain Benfica in the competition. According To Mirror News.
Guardiola also admitted that he was watching events unfold with his players in the dressing room and couldn’t understand why Mourinho had told Trubin to go up for the late free kick.
When asked if he would contact Mourinho to thank him, Guardiola replied, “Yes, of course. We were all in the changing room, and we didn’t realize Benfica needed a goal to qualify.
“So when their goalkeeper went up, we said, ‘Why you go’? But it was a sound approach for Jose. We are quite thrilled to have finished in the top eight, given how competitive the Champions League has become. Hopefully, we’ll be in top form by March.
Bernardo Silva agreed that avoiding two additional play-off games was critical to City’s chances of completing a quadruple. He stated, “With a little drama, we did it.” Overall, we’re really pleased because we avoided two games.
Mourinho, a two-time winner of this tournament, believed his side deserved to continue their Champions League campaign. “A fantastic goal, a historic goal, a goal that nearly brought the whole stadium down.
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