Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola on Tuesday urged his players not to underestimate Inter Milan in Saturday’s Champions League final in Istanbul.
“Of course we are confident and optimistic, but at the same time I cannot deny the qualities and strengths of the opposing team. I never did, especially in the Champions League final,” Guardiola said at City’s pre-match press conference on Tuesday.
Guardiola’s men are just one game away from becoming the second English side to win the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup in the same season, a feat only achieved by Manchester United in 1998/99.
After beating Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals, then humiliating Real Madrid in the semi-finals, the Manchester City players are the favorites for this final: they will face Inter Milan, third in Serie A and whose ascent to the final, in beating Porto, Benfica and AC Milan, proved easier.
In their last 27 matches, the Citizens have suffered only one defeat against Brentford on the last day of the Premier League at the end of May, when the title was long overdue.
But the Catalan manager prefers to forget the recent past: “We know that what counts in the final is what you do for 95 minutes”, he said, “it doesn’t matter what has been achieved in the phase groups, in the eighth or quarter-finals, in the Premier League or FA Cup. It’s a unique match, it’s about being better than the opponent.
According to him, the preparation for this final, with Saturday’s cup victory against the Red Devils, was much better than two years ago before Porto’s final, which they lost 1-0 to Chelsea.
Only point of concern: the right side Kyle Walker, who suffers from a back injury, was absent in training on Tuesday. “Yesterday it was not going, today it’s a little better but we don’t want to take any risks. We will advise in the next few days, ”warned Guardiola.
