In a surprising turn of events, Bayer Leverkusen defeated Manchester City 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium during a pivotal UEFA Champions League match on Tuesday night. This game commemorated Pep Guardiola’s 100th game managing the club in the elite competition. by Tom Richey He has thus become only the third manager to reach this milestone with an English club. Guardiola joins a very elite club of coaches. He ranks just behind Sir Alex Ferguson, who coached 190 matches with Manchester United, and Arsene Wenger, who presided over 177 games with Arsenal.
Guardiola’s side were on the wrong end of a surprising thrashing by Newcastle in the Premier League in the lead up to this game. In response, he rotated his starting XI by making ten changes. All of this with players such as Erling Haaland, Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku all absent from the lineup. As for Phil Foden and Mateo Kovačić, Guardiola chose to bench them, as was his strategy rotating the squad. Even with these changes, Manchester City never looked comfortable in their flow. They left the first half with just two shots on goal.
Bayer Leverkusen’s Impressive Performance
Bayer Leverkusen were there to punish all of Manchester City’s rare mistakes on the night. Alejandro Grimaldo opened the scoring for the Bundesliga side in the first 45 minutes. His seventh-minute effort served as an early harbinger for what would turn into a historic night for the guests. Patrik Schick soon doubled their lead, and now trailing, City were left to search for a response.
Kasper Hjulmand, Leverkusen’s manager, said he could hardly be more proud of his team’s performance.
“What a performance. I’m very happy and proud of the boys. We played exactly what we wanted to do, we played with a lot of courage and were calm on the ball when we had to.” – Kasper Hjulmand
Leverkusen’s defense was an absolute wall all game, shutting down every attack that Manchester City threw their way. Goalkeeper Mark Flekken produced a fine save from Tijjani Reijnders, but it highlighted the character, grit and game-management of Leverkusen on the night.
Guardiola Reflects on the Match
Even after the match, Guardiola recognized his team’s mistakes. He pointed out that they did generate opportunities, but they were almost all half-chances that never really threatened Leverkusen.
“They were very good. We also did good things, we had chances, but it was half chances, always with a block or something there.” – Pep Guardiola
Guardiola later said that he regretted making such wholesale changes to his side. He argued that while these strategic moves tend to be winners, they just didn’t work this time.
“If we win, it wouldn’t have been a problem, so I accept that maybe it was a lot but if we’re playing every two, three or four days… but maybe it was too much, seeing the result.” – Pep Guardiola
That defeat was seen as a warning of the difficulties facing any team trying to compete on four fronts. Guardiola’s partial touchline ban required him to be replaced by Mikel Arteta, reminiscent of a similar situation in 2018 when Arteta stepped in for Guardiola.
A Historic Achievement Amidst Setbacks
Although it came in a loss, Guardiola’s milestone moment is big not just for the man himself, but for Manchester City. His tenure has been largely defined by success in the domestic league and cup competitions, notably winning a domestic treble. His talent for turning lemons into lemonade, figuratively speaking, has always been a defining characteristic of his management approach.
Jarell Quansah of Bayer Leverkusen expressed immense pride in his team’s performance, highlighting their character and determination throughout the match.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling. Coming into tonight, we had a lot of senior players absent for a number of reasons; the boys managed to pull through. Everyone led tonight; it was a lot of character, fight and grit.” – Jarell Quansah
Leverkusen’s victory at the Etihad Stadium marks them as the first German team to achieve this feat since Guardiola’s Bayern Munich did so in October 2013. This result not only enhances Leverkusen’s confidence going forward, but underlines that they are serious contenders in European football.
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