Man City lack experience needed to win Champions League, says Guardiola

Pep Guardiola believes Manchester City lack the required experience needed to lift the Champions League trophy.

The Catalan coach was recruited with the specific directive of lifting the highly-coveted ‘Big Ears’ trophy, but he has significantly downplayed the club’s chances of clinching continental silverware.

His side faltered last season against Liverpool in the quarter-finals, and against Monaco in the round-of-16 the season before, but they have won two of their opening three matches this season.

However, Guardiola has told fans not to get too excited, instead subtly questioning the club’s mentality, suggesting City still “don’t have that feeling”.

“To win this competition, it’s not enough just to have desire, or wanting to win. You have to have many circumstances,” he told reporters (via the Mirror).

“You have to have experience and still we don’t have enough in some moments. But every game is a new experience.

“That’s not enough that the manager wants to win it. It’s not just the players. You have to have the desire, the club, chairman, owner, the fans, everyone has to push to be closer, to achieve the next stage.

“When it happens, everyone will feel it. It’s one important thing to win this kind of title, but you have to be pushed, not just by the manager, by everyone surrounding Manchester City that we have to win it – and still we don’t have that feeling.

“The feeling that the fans are pushing, that we have to win the Champions League.

“Normally what happens is you get closer, that’s why I feel we are a really good team, it’s a pleasure to work with them. But in this competition you need something special – and still I don’t feel it.”

‘Champions League success is in Barcelona’s blood’

Guardiola has insisted that any aspirations of European success are indoctrinated into the hearts of every Barcelona player from a young age, believing that the “feeling” of Champions League desire is in the club’s blood.

He added: “I was born in Barcelona and grew up there. I started to play there. Then when you start to play they inoculate it into your blood and body that the only way to survive is to win.

READ MORE: From Benzema to Mourinho: the major winners and losers from Tuesday’s Champions League fixtures

“But also I learned that when you don’t, life goes on and you have another chance the next season.

“So we’ll put more efforts into winning this competition. I saw last season and this that in many ways the club, we are still not ready to win it. That doesn’t mean we are not going to try.

“Every year we’ll be closer and sooner or later it’s going to happen. Hopefully as soon as possible.”

Guardiola famously won the Champions League title with Barca in 2009 and 2011 respectively, and will be hoping for similar success in England.

City comfortably beat Shakhtar Donetsk 3-0 on Tuesday, but will now turn their attention to Premier League action, as they clash with Tottenham Hotspur on Monday night.

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