Man City: Lack of Penalty Practise Cost Them The Game
Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, has admitted that the reason for his club’s dismal performance during the penalty shoot-outs in their game against Everton on Sunday, is purely because they had not practised penalties.
Manchester City and Everton drew 1-1 after the penalties.
For Man City, it was Kevin De Bruyne and Sergio Aguero who were unable to net their penalty goals, with both of their shots being saved by Everton goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg .
When reporters asked Guardiola after the game whether or not he had practised penalty shoot-outs with his team, he gave a very straight answer:
“…No. I don’t have time to practise everything I want to practise…You can practise penalties in training, but in training, no one is there…In the final of the Champions League, that is crucial. If the player says, ‘I want to be there’, that is enough,” he said.
He also later insisted that there are more important things to practise than penalties.
Speaking about their draw afterward, Guardiola also said that he feels sad for his players, as they deserved to win the match:
“…I am not frustrated with the team. I am sad for the players. They deserve to win the game. They did absolutely everything to win it,” he said.
