Pellegrini warns Guardiola of City pressure

Alam Khan - Reporter 08:47 25/04/2016
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  • Outgoing: Pellegrini.

    Manuel Pellegrini has warned Pep Guardiola the pressure will be on to bring more success to Manchester City – even if they become European champions this season.

    As he prepares to lead the Etihad outfit against former club Real Madrid in a mouth-watering Champions League semi-final tie, the Chilean says the club will not stop in their quest to become the dominant force at home and abroad.

    Pellegrini will be replaced by Guardiola as City boss this summer despite winning the English Premier League, lifting the League Cup twice and now taking them to the brink of a European final.

    And he believes failure will not be an option, especially after his Euro heroics.

    “At this club it’s important to improve because four years ago (under Roberto Mancini), we couldn’t qualify from the group stage and we lost all the games,” he said. “Then (under me) we finished second in the group with 15 points and played very well.

    “The next year was more difficult and to qualify for the round of 16, we won in Roma and against Bayern Munich at home.

    “This year we won our group, we eliminated Paris Saint-Germain, now we are in the semi-final, so I think that reflects how we have progressed.

    “I hope we will win it this year. If not, we have made important steps towards doing it in the next seasons.

    “I also think that if we win the Champions League this year, it’s not the finish of the project here.

    “Every year we must be involved in both competitions and I hope that this is the target for the club. It would be very important to do it this year, but you cannot think that it is all done. You must continue every year playing the same way in both competitions.

    “I’m sure that this club will be involved a lot of times in the last stages of the Champions League and will continue fighting for domestic titles, like we did this season.”

    Pellegrini expects Cristiano Ronaldo to face City in Tuesday’s first leg and has “no revenge” in mind after Real sacked him in 2010 when they finished La Liga runners-up to Guardiola’s Barcelona.

    The City boss added: “The important thing is that the team controls their emotions because it is the kind of game where any kind of mistake can make you lose the game.”

    He also insists his side, and particularly striker Sergio Aguero – with six goals in his last five games – are ready for Real.

    “I think always big players decide big games, so it’s very important to have, not only Kun, but a lot of players in their best moment,” he said. “I think we are in a good moment. Here in the Premier League, the last five games, we won four, we draw one.”

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