Spanish coach Pep Guardiola of Manchester City expressed his gratitude to team members John Stones and Fernandinho after the 4-3 victory over Real Madrid in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinals. Manchester City defeated Real Madrid 4-3 on Tuesday at the Etihad Stadium, with the decisive outcome now postponed until the return match at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.
Guardiola said in the post-match press conference: "It was a boxing match, it was an enjoyable game for us just as it was for the fans." He explained: "We gave everything. We played a good match and we will see the same team in a week. We know the value and capabilities of Real Madrid."
He added: "We will try to play well in the return leg, but the focus now is on the match against Leeds United in the league." He confirmed, "I am satisfied with the result. We played good football and showed good character. It was an important test and we cannot predict what will happen in the return leg."
Guardiola emphasized, "The result could have been better, but I have no complaints. We need to do the same at Santiago Bernabéu." He continued: "I would like to thank John Stones and Fernandinho for their effort; it is not normal to control Vinicius, but I was sure that Fernandinho would play well when he came in for Stones."
On the other hand, Carlo Ancelotti, the Real Madrid coach, stressed that his team and fans need to fight in the return leg of the Champions League semifinals against Manchester City for another magical night.
Ancelotti said in the post-match press conference: "We need to be ready. We, along with the fans, need to fight again for another magical night." He highlighted: "Benzema played a great match as always. He had the character to take the penalty brilliantly. Modric also had a great game, but sometimes you need to bring in a new player in the final minutes to recover the ball."
He added, "I did not take Modric off because he was bad. Dani Ceballos also played wonderfully and showed strong character." He continued: "I am angry that we lost many duels in the first half; City scored two goals that could have been avoided with more focus, but our reaction was good and we revived the match for the return leg."
He explained: "We started extremely poorly; we were soft, but we showed what we have shown before, which is our ability to react." He concluded: "We kept going until the end, but we need to defend better. We were good with the ball, but in the return leg, we need to defend better; this is very important."
