Pep Guardiola appears to have been handed a boost as Manchester City make another assault on the Champions League. Standing in the way of their progress to the semi-finals are Atletico Madrid.
With a 1-0 lead over the Spanish side, Guardiola will be encouraged by the fact that Diego Simeone’s strategy failed to produce a single shot in the first leg. That being said, Atletico did set up to defend primarily, something they received plenty of criticism for – even if their captain Koke was keen to disassociate them from some negative stereotypes.
Guardiola was keen to highlight his team’s defensive work however, telling the BBC that it was essential to remain solid in order to reach the semi-finals.
“You have to be solid and concede few goals, indeed few chances. We work on defending when we don’t have the ball and when we do have the ball.”
One of their star defenders could also make his return to action tomorrow too. Portuguese defender Ruben Dias has travelled with the team, having missed the last seven matches for City.