Manchester City
Guardiola: “It’s his job” as Haaland climbs Premier League and City charts
Haaland has 93 Premier League goals from 103 appearances; Guardiola: “It’s his job” Doku drew “Wow!”
Pep Guardiola distilled a familiar bluntness when asked about Erling Haaland’s recent scoring numbers. “It’s his job,” he grinned, a line that underlined how routine the striker’s output now looks for the club.
Haaland has 93 goals in the Premier League from just 103 appearances, a total that moved him past Ole Gunnar Solskjær as the competition’s most prolific Norwegian. The brace that produced that mark also propelled him into Manchester City’s list of the club’s 10 all-time top scorers.
The 25-year-old, who joined City three years ago, has already accumulated 133 goals across all competitions for the club. That sits a little over half of Sergio Agüero’s club record of 260, though Haaland’s current Premier League scoring rate suggests the gap will narrow if he maintains this form.
Guardiola downplayed spectacle in favour of substance, calling Haaland “an incredibly important figure for us.” “He always has the feeling that he can score and I’m really pleased again for the performance for the team,” the manager added, linking individual output to collective progress as City closed ground on a faltering Liverpool.
Reflecting on the squad’s response after recent matches, the manager said: “Since the [Manchester] United game, the team showed another way in their body language when they weren’t playing good against Arsenal in how they defend and helped each other—that is the key for everything,” Guardiola beamed.
For all the headlines around Haaland, it was Jérémy Doku who drew the most vivid reaction on the night. The winger’s dribbles and combinations left Guardiola openly exclaiming: “Wow!”
“I ask the wingers in the final third to go one vs. one or one vs. two and I have the feeling that Jérémy’s decision-making in the final third improved, like, wow!” Guardiola said, later adding: “Comparing to the past, he made an assist to Erling and sees the channels.”
On Doku’s role against compact defences the manager observed: “He’s an incredible threat against teams that are a low block and deep,” and added: “Jérémy is really important. When the team is transitional maybe he can struggle a bit but he had the ball and brought the opponent to the box.”
Manchester City
Guardiola Rejects Narrative After Champions League Exit to Real Madrid
Guardiola defended City’s European record after exit to Real Madrid, insisting City were superior…
Pep Guardiola spoke with visible frustration after Manchester City were eliminated from the Champions League by Real Madrid, insisting his team had been the better side across the two legs.
“My biggest challenge has been [Jürgen] Klopp,” Guardiola said, recalling his enthralling Premier League battles with Liverpool over the years. He added of European opposition: “To play against Real Madrid so many times, with the generation we had, we were good enough. We won both matches. Statistically, we were similar; they eliminated us more often, but based on how we played, I think they know that too.”
When asked if Madrid were deserved winners, Guardiola’s reply was laconic: “1–5 … congratulations.”
After the tie was decided Guardiola went onto the pitch to shake hands with the Real Madrid squad. Most exchanges were routine, but an encounter with centre back Antonio Rüdiger escalated. The pair remained locked in a handshake while words were exchanged and both had to be separated by members of each side. The Real Madrid defender appeared to be doing most of the talking; Nathan Aké intervened as a peacemaker before Los Blancos boss Álvaro Arbeloa managed to drag his player away.
The defeat renewed the debate over City’s European record. City’s limited success on the continental stage — one title win in 10 seasons — is frequently cited by critics. Guardiola noted that only Carlo Ancelotti has won more European Cups than he has.
He suggested expectations have been shaped by his early achievements. “Everybody wants to fire me!” he said. He continued: “Listen, I started my career really young, in the second team in Barcelona and we were promoted. And my first season, after Barcelona won the treble, great success, and after, if my teams don’t win the treble, they are a failure. I know that.
“My first season here, you remember, ‘When are you going to win the Champions League?’ We won the league with 100 points. ‘When are you going to win the Champions League?’ In the end, we won it. ‘When are you going to win the Champions League?’”
The club record from 2016–17 to 2025–26 in the Champions League includes a 2022–23 winners finish against Inter, a 2020–21 final versus Chelsea and several eliminations by Real Madrid in recent seasons.
Manchester City
Rodri deflects Real Madrid interest with guarded ‘we’ll see’ after 3-0 defeat
Rodri keeps options open amid Real Madrid links after 3-0 defeat, offering: we’ll see. Transfer talk
Manchester City midfielder Rodri declined to engage directly with speculation linking him to Real Madrid after his side were beaten 3–0 by Los Blancos in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16. Speaking to Cadena SER, the Spaniard avoided a clear answer and left the possibility open.
“I’m not going to answer that,” Rodri said in regards to a potential move the Bernabéu. “It’s a moment to think about what we have now, with my team, in my season, and then we’ll see.”
The context for the interest is clear in public reporting: Real Madrid have signed some of the biggest names in the sport over the last two years but have still failed to replace Toni Kroos and Luka Modrić. On paper the club already had a long list of midfielders available, yet the creative void remains.
Xabi Alonso attempted to mould Federico Valverde or Arda Güler into the next Kroos, but neither player could match the almost impossible standard set by the German playmaker. Alonso also tried to deploy Bellingham in a deeper role to cover the lack of creativity, but the England international was occupied with tracking back for teammates and cleaning up mistakes rather than producing magic outside his No. 10 role.
Aurélien Tchouaméni and Eduardo Camavinga have been characterised as too defensive-minded to consistently pull the strings of the attack, leaving Real Madrid with a glaring hole in their squad. That is a vacancy the club would likely seek to fill from another team.
Real Madrid have not hidden their admiration for Rodri, and previous reports suggested they hoped to use the midfielder’s dwindling contract with City to acquire him at a lower cost. If the Sky Blues do not cash in this summer or next winter, they could watch him leave as a free agent in June 2027. Even worse than losing their Ballon d’Or winner would be to lose him for free.
Manchester City
Guardiola accepts selection error after City draw, cites balance concerns
Guardiola accepted responsibility for benching Rayan Cherki after City drew 1–1 with West Ham extra
Pep Guardiola admitted he made a selection mistake after Manchester City’s 1–1 draw with West Ham United, conceding he “deserved” the criticism for not starting Rayan Cherki. City produced 24 efforts and forced Mads Hermansen into five saves, yet they struggled to create clear openings against a stubborn rearguard.
Antoine Semenyo, deployed in an unfamiliar central attacking midfield role rather than the centre forward tandem he has often occupied, found chances difficult to come by. It was suggested to Guardiola that Cherki, who was fresh after not starting the midweek Champions League collapse to Real Madrid, would have been better suited to that lock-picking position. “You are right, yeah. Absolutely. For that role, absolutely. There is no-one better than him,” the manager conceded. Cherki only entered the game for the final half-hour.
Guardiola did not deflect responsibility. “Bad selection,” he sighed, “now you can criticize me incredibly, for the selection, now I deserve it.” He placed the decision in the context of balance, explaining the risks of fielding certain attacking combinations: “We learned in the beginning [of the season] that when we played Erling [Haaland] in that moment with Jérémy [Doku] or Cherki that we are incredibly unbalanced, we do not have the stability that teams in the Premier League have to have and that is why I try to handle it for that.
“It’s a team that is growing, I think that from the beginning we’ve grown a lot but still it is not finished business. It is like that sometimes but I will not say that I don’t love playing with Rayan, especially when he came from the bench, always the impact is unbelievable.
“But sometimes he has not the speed. The team is always stable when Semenyo and Nico O’Reilly play in the winger position and go inside, arrive to the box, they are really, really good. I’m finding still the best way to have stability and consistency in the team.”
Guardiola contrasted Saturday’s match with City’s 3–1 FA Cup victory over Newcastle United a week earlier, and acknowledged that after the 3–0 reverse at the Bernabéu they now face a mountain in both the Champions League and Premier League. That Bernabéu defeat began with a front-footed 4-2-4 that “largely worked for the first 20 minutes,” until Fede Valverde scored and “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
With City nine points behind Arsenal, Rodri accepted the gap: “Maybe yes, maybe no,” he said. “We’re not going to drop hands, we’re going to keep fighting. We know it’s going to be difficult because we have this experience of what you need to win at the end. I think the distance is too far but we’re going to fight until the end.”
