Spaniard Pep Guardiola, coach of Manchester City, said – after his team was drawn for the quarter-finals of the Champions League against Real Madrid – that Royal Madrid has become a different team thanks to the influence of Englishman Jude Bellingham.
Defending champion City won the Champions League semi-final last season, defeating Real Madrid, which won the title 14 times. The two teams tied 1-1 in the first leg in Madrid, and City won the second leg at the Etihad Stadium 4-0.
Bellingham joined the Merengues from German Dortmund last July for about 103 million pounds ($112 million) and scored 20 goals for his current team and provided 9 assists in all competitions during this season.
In response to a question about the current top scorer in La Liga, Guardiola told reporters: “Bellingham’s influence is enormous. The team (because of him) is different from what it was last season. His influence is clear and we must work to discover what he is doing in order to confront him.”
Guardiola added, “Facing Real Madrid is always a difficult challenge. There is no doubt about that. They are an exceptional team and at the level of this tournament they can excel in many aspects thanks to their previous experience.”
He continued, “Just as happened last season, there were moments in his favor and moments in our favor. The more we succeed in maintaining our moments of superiority for a longer period of time, the more we advance. We will try to perform well in Madrid and then here among our fans. And we will do it again.”
The first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals will be held on the ninth and 10th of next April, while the return matches will be held on the 16th and 17th of the same month.
City will meet Newcastle United in the FA Cup quarter-finals today, Saturday, and then face London’s Arsenal in the English Premier League after international matches.
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