Pep Guardiola was proud of his players after they beat Benfica to qualify for the semi-finals of the Champions League.This is the seventh consecutive time that the Catalan has progressed to this stage of the competition and he allowed himself a moment of levity after the game.
“I know Cristiano Ronaldo would prefer Benfica in the next round,” he joked, “So I am sorry that he will not have the opportunity to play them.” Guardiola also had other targets in his sights, chiefly those who believe that he must deliver the Champions League trophy in order to be considered a success in Germany.”At the end of the day, a coach must win titles and as many games as possible,” he said, “And I have won many titles and many games.
“He won the game against Benfica as well, but it was not an easy victory.”Benfica pushed us very hard, even though they were missing some important players. We attacked better than in Munich and that was the difference.”Pep is now in an interesting position, he would like to win the Champions League in his final season, but he may have to overcome the team he is coaching next year to do it.
“Everybody knows I will be at Manchester City next year and perhaps we will meet them in the next round, but we could meet any of the remaining teams and we are focused on the most important issue, which is getting to the final.”We controlled the match for 90 minutes,” he concluded, “And we need to keep doing that all the way to the final.”
