With 20,000 empty seats at the ground and those fans that were there booing the Uefa Champions League anthem, as has become customary, Guardiola appeared unimpressed. “They must forget it”, he told a post-match news conference.
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As quoted by Sky Sports, Monchengladbach Spokesperson Markus Aretz said: “We asked UEFA and Manchester City play at 6pm because for sporting reasons we wanted to fly back to Germany”.
“What happened in the past is the past”.
“We need them to compete against the best teams in the world”.
“In three or four weeks coming here is the best football player ever (Lionel Messi), with Luis Suarez, with Neymar and the unbelievable Barcelona team, and we have to come here to enjoy it”. You have to come here to enjoy it.
Manchester City’s Champions League game against Borussia Monchengladbach, postponed because of torrential rain, will be played on Wednesday evening at 7:45 p.m. BST. “Next time I will be there”. “It is our job”. We are first in the Premier League but the way we have played so far will not be enough to win the Premier League. “We created a lot of chances”. With our supporters we are stronger.
“This was the most important game in the season to now”, he added.
Guardiola also heaped praise on Gundogan, who made a valuable contribution in his first game in a City shirt.
David Silva is understood to have picked up a minor knock in training so Guardiola handed Ilkay Gundogan a full debut after his summer move from Borussia Dortmund. But Gundogan had a hand in the second as he was tripped on the edge of the box and Aguero slotted home.
A Manchester City statement suggested the game was postponed primarily over concerns for fans’ safety in and around the stadium, rather than the state of the pitch.
“It’s not easy after such a long time”.
Speaking to BT Sport in the aftermath of the game, the 25-year-old admitted it was ‘a flawless day for me.
City next face Celtic in Glasgow on September 28 while Moenchengladbach host Barcelona, who dismantled the Scottish side 7-0 on Tuesday.
“We played well. We probably could have scored a few more goals”, the City defender said.
Guardiola said: “He was not ready to play 90 minutes but played with the quality he has”.
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He declared: “With what these players have done since the beginning – in our games home and away – our players deserve the standing ovation. They may have had a bad day at the Nou Camp but they are strong in their own stadium and we’re expecting every game to be hard but we’ll go to Parkhead and try to get three points and play the same way we did against Monchengladbach”.
