Speaking about Stones and Walker, Guardiola said he will take a long hard look at them in training before making a final decision on Tuesday.
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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has a major headache in the form of Kyle Walker and John Stones’ fitness concerns ahead of a blockbuster last-four clash. With Man City set to play Real Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League semifinal on Tuesday, Guardiola admitted that the defensive duo are ‘doubts’ for the match. Earlier this month, Walker had suffered an ankle knock during the quarter-final second leg tie away at Atletico Madrid which has left him sidelined till now. Meanwhile, Stones came off reporting muscle tightness during the 3-0 win against Brighton last week and missed last Saturday’s Premier League win against Watford.
One thing is clear, full-back Joao Cancelo will miss the match against the La Liga leaders through suspension. Speaking about Stones and Walker, Guardiola said he will take a long hard look at them in training before making a final decision on Tuesday. “They are doubts, they didn’t train for the last week, ten days, John since Brighton. We will see how they feel, and take a decision tomorrow,” Guardiola told the media, as per their club’s website.
“We have a training session this afternoon at 4. We will see how they feel. We have time tonight and tomorrow morning to decide. I have to see today’s session to decide.”
On Tuesday, Manchester City will face the Champions League’s most successful team – Real Madrid, who have won the competition 13 times. On the other hand, City reached the final for the first time last campaign when they lost 1-0 to Chelsea. On Tuesday though, Guardiola wants his players to make the most of the moment and enjoy the occasion.
READ MORE – Manchester City vs Real Madrid: Champions League Schedule, Fixture, Probable Lineups and Live Streaming details
“It’s an honour to be here in the semi-final playing Real Madrid. In the last decade we start to be there and it’s an honour to be here. We try to do a good game,” Guardiola added. “If we had to compete with history, we wouldn’t have a chance. Their history speaks for itself. We have to have the desire to compete against them. To play against Real Madrid is an incredible test. We want to try it. We need to suffer, to stick together, when we have the ball try to attack.
“It would be the same if we face Bayern Munich or Barcelona, the teams who have been here many times. A decade ago we weren’t here and now we are here. It’s good lessons for the future. The history, we cannot change it. Tomorrow, we play 11 v 11 and the players will decide if decision making is good. We play against players who have been in this position many times. That’s why they have things that maybe still we don’t have. But maybe there are things we have they don’t have, I don’t know.
“At the end it is 11 v 11, they have quality and it’s how strong they are mentally. This game will not be won by me or Carlo (Real boss Ancelotti) – it’s the players. Being in the semi-final is so good. One day we will not be here because it’s so demanding – look at the big teams who are not here. I say to the players, enjoy that moment. You never know if we will be back here at any stage. We try to be ourselves in the good moments and bad moments.”
