Pep Guardiola gives Manchester City injury update on two key players ahead of Real Madrid clash

Pep Guardiola has provided a Manchester City injury update on two of his key players ahead of their crucial UCL tie against Real Madrid. He revealed that he has not made a decision on Manchester City duo Kyle Walker and Nathan Ake and wants to wait until the last training session before deciding if the defenders can make the team. 

Walker and Ake have missed the last few matches but have started training once again. The duo were expected to make the team against Luton Town but were unavailable for the Premier League clash. 

Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Guardiola confirmed that Manchester City had a training session scheduled for later in the evening, and that was when he was going to make a decision. He said:

“I am going to wait and see the training and in the last one or two training sessions see how he looks. But he looks good, his face, his mood. I don’t know from the bench, from the beginning [of the match] if he will be with us tomorrow. But that’s incredibly good news. We have the final training at 4 and then we will decide.”

Pep Guardiola wants Manchester City to respect Real Madrid but not fear them

Pep Guardiola was quizzed whether he feared playing Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. He was quick to dismiss any such suggestions and claimed that he was never afraid to take them on.

However, he added that there was always respect for the Blancos as they are a good side and said:

“No I don’t fear them. I respect them a lot, I’ve faced them many times. And if I said I were scared of them, I would be being false. I spoke of the condition of the pitch with the best wishes in the world and it’s their decision if they don’t do that. You can believe what you want when I say that. I have to have respect. There’s the rivalry, you want to beat them and do well, sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. I want to do as well as we can, be ourselves. If we can’t be, it doesn’t matter. But I’m not scared of them and if they beat me – as as happened many times – we will say congratulations and wish them well.”

Real Madrid and Manchester City are locked at 3-3 after the first leg. The two sides met last season as well, and the Premier League side went on to win the clash at Etihad by a thumping 4-0 scoreline. 

Also read: Phil Foden limped off after scoring stunner in 3-3 draw against Real Madrid