Pep Guardiola Rates Manchester City’s Chances of Retaining Champions League Crown

• Manchester City won the UEFA Champions League for the first time last season
• The Cityzens won on the second time of asking, having lost the final to Chelsea in 2021
• City begin the defence of their title with a group game against Red Star Belgrade tomorrow night

Manchester City will begin the defence of their UEFA Champions League title tomorrow against Red Star Belgrade, and Pep Guardiola has rated their chances of retaining the title.

City won Europe's most coveted club trophy for the first time in their history last season, beating Inter Milan 1-0 in the final thanks to Rodri's 70th-minute strike.

It was their second final in two years. They lost the 2021 final to Chelsea in Porto and narrowly lost the semi-final to eventual winners Real Madrid in 2022.

The defending champions have been drawn in Group G with RB Leipzig, Red Star Belgrade, and Young Boys for the 2023/24 season as they aim to replicate their historic feat.

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Guardiola rates City's chances

City beat the pressure of having never won the UCL before, and Guardiola thinks this is a crucial relief ahead of the game against Belgrade.

"No, easier. It was more difficult to win the first one. Incredible for us in history. Let's try to win tomorrow, a team who is so aggressive and fast upfront," he told a news conference.

The 2024 final will be held at Wembley Stadium, and Pep is not thinking about that just yet as it is a long road before June next year.

"I didn't think. Win the first one, after when you have to think of the final is the quarters and semis. The first game in these months, it's a long time," he said.

City are the only Premier League team with a perfect record in the league, winning all five games, four of those after a long-term injury to talisman Kevin De Bruyne.

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How Guardiola convinced Walker to stay

Sports Brief also reported on how Guardiola convinced Kyle Walker to stay at Manchester City despite having interest from Bayern Munich.

Walker extended his contract, snubbing interest from the Germans and revealed that a time out with his manager at a fancy restaurant convinced him to remain in the Premier League.