UCL: Guardiola Names Player Who Helped Man City Beat Dortmund, Hails Bellingham, Özcan

Pep Guardiola, the Manchester City boss, has talked about the players who influenced his team.

He identified forward, Julian Alvarez as the player who helped his team defeat Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in Wednesday’s Champions League tie.

Guardiola also singled out Dortmund stars, Jude Bellingham and Salih Özcan for praise.

The Spaniard watched as Man City defeated the Bundesliga giants at the Etihad Stadium, thanks to two goals from John Stones and Erling Haaland.

Speaking at his post-match press conference, Guardiola said: “The first years I was here we would never ever come back. We did not have the ability to come back.

“And now against Aston Villa [when we] were champions, West Ham, Newcastle, Crystal Palace. We can create momentum, Julian helped us, one extra body in the box.

“They defended the pockets really well with Bellingham and Ozak [Özcan], but the problem was we didn’t play with the rhythm, I try to tell them it is not done. Sule and Hummels, when you play with Bayern Munich, you have to be a good player.”

“We struggled,” he said, adding, “We played in the wrong gear and we are who we are, we can win or lose, when we play the last 35 mins, we realise okay we are 1-0 down and subs come on and give a new rhythm. After you can lose, but this is who we are, the Champions League doesn’t wait, it doesn’t forgive you.”