Erling Haaland & Kevin De Bruyne requested to be substituted against Real Madrid, reveals Pep Guardiola

Manchester City lost 3-4 on penalties to Real Madrid

Following the loss against Real Madrid on penalties, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola explained his substitutions of Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland.

Guardiola led City to an unprecedented treble in the Champions League last season, but on Wednesday they lost to the Spanish team in the semi-finals.

Rodrygo gave the La Liga powerhouses the early lead, but in the 76th minute of play, De Bruyne equalised for City, forcing extra time and a shootout.

Unexpectedly, De Bruyne and Haaland—possibly City’s most vital offensive players—were taken off the pitch before penalties were called.

‘Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne asked me to go out,’ Guardiola said in his post-match press conference. They could not continue. In the game they were amazing. I didn’t plan to make a lot of substitutions but they asked me to go out because they could not continue.’

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De Bruyne was substituted for Mateo Kovacic about eight minutes prior to to the shootout, and Haaland was substituted by Julian Alvarez in the ninetieth minute.

De Bruyne and Haaland were replaced, and Guardiola has now disclosed the reason, stating that both players asked for a break. Guardiola, meanwhile, seems to be taking a subtle go at Real Madrid for their intense defence.

‘I would prefer to win, first of all,’ Guardiola added. ‘Congrats to Real Madrid. They defended so deep. We did everything. I have no regrets. We played expectational in all departments and unfortunately we could not win. That’s what it is.

‘They defended deeper than in previous seasons. We created chances but football is about scoring goals and they did it better than us.

‘I have a duty to say thank you, deep in my heart, to these [City] players for the way they played against that team.

‘Football is about results, it is a business, they will be in the semi-finals and we will not. It is [only] little margins. Sometimes you win a penalty [shootout], sometimes not.’

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