PEP GUARDIOLA claims his Manchester City legacy will be “exceptional” — even if he fails to win the Champions League.
But City defender Kyle Walker feels the squad owe it to their Abu Dhabi owners to finally become kings of Europe.
City, on the brink of a fifth Premier League title in six seasons, are yet to lift the trophy they really want in Pep’s seven years at the Etihad.
With their semi-final with Real Madrid poised at 1-1 ahead of the second leg, Guardiola said: “My legacy is exceptional already.
“I’ve been here many times already. The legacy is that we have had one hell of a time.
“For many years they will remember a generation of players who for five or six years scored lots of goals and conceded very few — won lots of things and won very well.
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“People should remember that. It would be a good book.
“Whether or not they will remember us or not I don’t know but we have had a good time.”
However, Walker believes that after 12 consecutive years in the competition, it is high time they finally lifted the trophy.
The defender said: “You have to just look over the road at United and what they have accomplished over a number of years.
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“When you get compared to that team, they won countless titles.
“We’ve done five in six years, hopefully, if we can cross the line on this one.
“But the club is missing the Champions League and the owners and the amount of money they have pumped into this club and the investment they have done, we owe that to them.
“We got to the Champions League final against Chelsea and did not perform as well as we can.
“So we owe that to ourselves to get some revenge because we know it was below par in 2021.”
Victory over champs Real would leave Pep’s Treble chasers hot favourites to lift Europe’s big prize.
Guardiola added: “We’re not stupid, we know how important this game is.
“It is maybe one of the most important games since we came together here. We cannot deny that. For the competition, for the rival, for many things.”
Guardiola’s players battled back to earn a draw in the Bernabeu last week thanks to Kevin De Bruyne’s stunner.
But Pep said: “My feeling is we have to play better than we did in Madrid.
“But all the players have to do is what we’ve done for many years.
“I’ve lost seven semi- finals out of ten. I’ve lost more than I’ve won, so there are many things you can’t control but my only wish is to be ourselves.”
The ex-Barca boss has been accused of causing City’s downfall in Europe by tinkering too much.
And he teased: “I have an idea that we could do something a bit differently but it’s nothing special.
“I’m not overthinking it, don’t worry guys, nothing different to what we’ve done, just more fluid and play a bit better.”
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Last term, the Etihad clash saw City winning 4-3 in the first leg — before slipping up in Spain.
Guardiola added: “We’d like to have the game we had here last season, I’d sign for it right now but I don’t think it will happen.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
