JAKARTA - Pep Guardiola defended his team's choices and reserve goalkeeper Zack Steffen following a poor first-half display that shattered Manchester City's FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool on Saturday night.
Liverpool led 3-0 at half-time, thanks to a first-half performance that Jürgen Klopp described as the best of his reign. In addition, the fatal error of Steffen, who ignored John Stones' feedback and allowed Sadio Mané to score in a tackle was also the cause.
The US international was one of seven changes Guardiola made from the side that started Wednesday's Champions League quarter-finals at Atlético Madrid. He insisted there was no alternative amid a grueling schedule and the pursuit of the Premier League title.
FULL-TIME | Our #FACup run comes to an end.
🔵 2-3 🔴 #ManCity pic.twitter.com/03c6lq9z9B
— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 16, 2022
"We had a lot of games and journeys and a lot of important games and that's why I chose this team. The first goal was a set piece, where Liverpool was so strong and scored a lot of goals, and the second was an accident," Guardiola said after the game.
"Then we conceded a goal in the last minute of the first half but after that, we showed great power. We didn't look tired after scoring because football is all about momentum. We had a golden opportunity and we scored. It's not easy to do that against Liverpool. We fought until the end and showed our greatness."
The Spaniard also insisted it would be unfair if he would no longer play Steffen, his keeper of the domestic cup this season, and that his mistake was a risk according to the team's strategy.
"I haven't spoken to Zack yet. It was an accident but we needed it to try because that's how we play our football. It was an accident, it happened," Pep insisted.
VOIR éGALEMENT:
"Edi (Ederson) was also close in the last game. We needed that to create our football, we used our goalkeeper to move our opponents into different situations. I'm pretty sure Zack doesn't want to do that. Sometimes strikers fail in front of the goalkeeper, sometimes the goalkeeper made a mistake.
"Playing him was a decision a few days ago. It's not fair when you play in a tournament and you don't play him. He deserved to play and after that, he had a good game. He made good saves and is a great keeper."
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