Pep Guardiola reveals reason behind on-field Manchester City team-talk in Leipzig | OneFootball

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has revealed why he held an animated on-field discussion with his squad after full-time against RB Leipzig on Wednesday night.

The midweek draw at the Red Bull Arena means the second-leg of the last-16 tie at the Etihad Stadium in two weeks time remains a totally open contest, with the scoreline finely poised at 1-1 between RB Leipzig and Manchester City.

Riyad Mahrez had put the reigning Premier League champions ahead in Saxony this week, after fine work from Jack Grealish to intercept a pass before Ilkay Gundogan flicked the ball into the path of the Algerian to cooly strike home.

However, Leipzig came out in the second-half fighting, applying a level of pressure on the Manchester City defence that they were certainly not used to in the opening 45 minutes. Josko Gvardiol would make the visitors pay, beating Ruben Dias to a header from a corner to bring the scores level.

At full-time however, amidst visible disappointment amongst the Manchester City squad as they looked to leave the pitch in Leipzig, Pep Guardiola made a point of having an animated discussion with his players on the field.

Speaking to broadcasters after the game, following speculation among supporters surrounding the nature of the conversation, Guardiola revealed, “They had their heads down. I said, ‘Why are you heads down, be heads up, it was really good the way you played. If people don’t like it, it doesn’t matter’.”

Those scenes came just moments after City’s players strongly protested for a handball from Benjamin Henrichs, as the Premier League side looked to win the game in the 92nd minute from a corner-kick.

However, the City manager remained tight-lipped on the subject, as he said, “I didn’t see it, so I cannot talk. But I know what happens in these situations.”

Pep Guardiola will hope to regroup his squad during the time that remains after touching down in Manchester on Thursday afternoon, ahead of the club’s trip to the south coast to take on Bournemouth in the Premier League.

The Saturday evening kick-off presents Manchester City with the opportunity to bounce back from back-to-back draws in the Premier League and Champions League, and remain within touching distance of title challengers Arsenal.

Mikel Arteta’s side currently lead City by two points at the top of the Premier League table, while the Gunners also have a game in hand.