Pep Guardiola: How Halftime Speech Inspired Man City to Victory in Champions League Final vs Inter

Pep Guardiola: How Halftime Speech Inspired Man City to Victory in Champions League Final vs Inter

Joel Reyes
April 2, 2024 at 9:51 AM
In this article:
Manchester City logo
Manchester City
England
27
UEFA Champions League logo
UEFA UCL
Europe
Inter Milan logo
Inter
Italy
35
Erling Braut Haaland logo
E.Haaland
Manchester City logoFNorway logo
Rodrigo Hernandez Cascante logo
Rodri
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  • Manchester City defeated Inter Milan 1-0 in the 2023 Champions League final
  • They became the second English club to complete the treble with that win
  • Pep Guardiola inspired his troops to victory with a passionate halftime speech

Manchester City fans will forever remember the night they became European champions.

A Netflix documentary has just been released, capturing in detail the club's crowning achievement.

Their Champions League victory wouldn't be possible without the brilliance of manager Pep Guardiola, whose speech during the half-time break became the stuff of legends.

Pep Guardiola, Manchester City, Inter, Champions League, Netflix
Pep Guardiola lifts the Champions League trophy after Manchester City defeated Inter in the 2023 final. Image: Nicolò Campo.
Source: Getty Images

Guardiola inspires players with emotional speech

Guardiola needed to inspire his troops during the interval after City struggled to break down Inter's defence in the first half, per The Mirror.

He made a passionate plea to his City stars, saying, "You’re exceptional players, playing the Champions League final. What you feel is normal, yes."

He urged his players to not give up, saying:

"That’s why we are here. We adjust one or two things, and we’ll be much more effective. Calm, guys, calm. Keep going, we’ll find momentum.”

Those words eased his players' nerves. They were feeling intense pressure, knowing that they were so close to completing the continental treble.

It didn't help matters for Manchester City that they encountered several heartbreaks in this tournament in the past.

They lost 1-0 to Chelsea in the 2021 Champions League final and suffered a gut-wrenching 6-5 aggregate defeat at the hands of Real Madrid in the 2022 semis.

Guardiola's speech worked wonders for City, who looked a different side in the second half. Rodri sent the blue half of Manchester into a frenzy when he scored the opening goal in the 68th minute.

That goal proved to be enough for City, who recorded a 1-0 win over Inter in the final.

Worst finishers in 2023-24 Premier League

Sports Brief recently reported on the 10 worst finishers in the Premier League this season.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin topped the list with a -6.5 G-xG rating.

Nicolas Jackson, Darwin Nunez, Bruno Fernandes, and Erling Haaland completed the top 5.

Authors
Joel Reyes photo
Joel Reyes
Joel Reyes is a sports editor at Sportsbrief.com with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of the Philippines. He has eight years of work experience in sports writing.
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