City could land the treble as they close in on the Premier League title and chase FA Cup and Champions League glory.
Pep Guardiola insists the coming weeks will not define his legacy at Manchester City because it is “already exceptional”.
City are on the brink of their fifth Premier League title in six years under Spain and could claim a treble as they also chase the FA Cup and the as-yet-elusive Champions League glory.
Wednesday brings a chance to reach the final of the European competition as they host Real Madrid in the second leg of the semi-final of a delicate 1-1 situation.
Winning the UEFA Champions League has long been seen as the club’s ultimate goal, but Guardiola – a two-time European champion with Barcelona who collected a total of nine major trophies with City – does not think his reputation depends on it.
He said: “My legacy is already exceptional!
“(We have been here) many times. We are not stupid, (we) know how important tomorrow is – perhaps the most important since we have been here.
“I tell the players, live it, enjoy the moment and how lucky we are. It is in our hands, it depends on us.
“We don’t have to do anything extraordinary – be ourselves, give everything. I have an incredible feeling about the team. Whatever happens, thanks for bringing us here again.
“The legacy is that we had a hell of a time and for many years (fans) will remember a generation of players who scored a lot of goals and conceded very little for five or six years and that we won a lot. things and they won very well and people should remember that. It would be a good book.
“I don’t know if they’ll remember us, but we had a good time.
City dominated for large spells in last week’s first leg at the Bernabeu, but Real were more incisive on the counter-attack and created more clear-cut chances.
City now have home advantage for the return but Guardiola feels his side will need to step up their performance.
He said: “Emotions are there and will be high – (they must) be high – but this alone will not beat a team like Real Madrid.
“We need a little better game plan, adjust a little, create more chances for our attackers.
“We are playing against Real Madrid in the semi-finals of the Champions League, the toughest opponents. It’s a challenge, but we’re up for it.
“We are coming really well. We are in the FA Cup final, one game from the Premier League, but we have to play better than Madrid. We have to perform well, not just feel like it.”
City are again without defender Nathan Ake due to a hamstring injury, but otherwise have a fully fit squad.
Leave a comment