MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Pep Guardiola kicked out at a drinks cooler in a moment of unbridled relief as Manchester City avoided a stunning early exit from the Champions League on Wednesday.
The City manager could not contain his emotions on a night of high drama at the Etihad Stadium as his team came back from the brink of elimination when 1-0 down to Brugge at halftime. A 3-1 win secured the lifeline of a playoff against either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich.
“I told them it was over, that we are out..." Guardiola admitted afterward when revealing his halftime team talk. But he also came up with the words to inspire a fightback.
“In the second half, we lift our soul and our hearts were free,” he said. “For today we are in the next round, that’s good.”
In a must-win game for the 2023 champion, City fell behind just before halftime, but victory meant it finished 22nd in the 36-team standings to secure a two-legged playoff to advance to the round of 16.
Guardiola appeared to live every moment on the sideline — being shown a yellow card for his over-exuberance at one point and switching from ballboy to cheerleader at various other times.
His nerves were clear to see as he fidgeted and gesticulated from the sides — holding his head in his hands at times and at others waving his arms in the air in an attempt hype up the home crowd. And when Brugge's Joel Ordonez turned the ball into his own net in the 62nd minute, Guardiola let it all out — launching a boot at the drinks cooler as he celebrated.
It was all in contrast to the dejection on his face as he slumped in his seat when Raphael Onyedika had fired Brugge in front.
Guardiola is known for showing his emotions during games and that has been even more evident in a troubled season for his four-time defending Premier League champion.
In a 3-3 draw with Feyenoord in November — when his team relinquished a 3-0 lead — he ended the match with cuts across his head and nose due to scratching himself.
He joked at the time that he wanted to “I want to harm myself,” and later had to clarify his comments, saying he "in no way intended to make light of the very serious issue of self-harm.”
City was always favorite to beat Brugge. But in a season when Guardiola's team picked up only one victory in 13 games from October to December, including nine losses, nothing could be taken for granted.
And when Brugge went ahead, a stunned Etihad must have feared the worse. But a night that began with a fire erupting from a merchandise stall outside the stadium ended in a celebration inside at the final whistle.
With Madrid or Bayern to come, Guardiola was honest about whether he thought City could go all the way to win the trophy for a second time.
“Right now, no (I don't),” he said. “I'm so pragmatic, the reality is the reality.”
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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
James Robson, The Associated Press
