Pep Guardiola stressed the urgency for his Manchester City team to elevate their performance swiftly in preparation for the upcoming Club World Cup, aiming to secure a win and potentially claim a title neither team has ever held.
Having secured a place in the Club World Cup following their Champions League triumph in June, Manchester City will face Urawa Red Diamonds from Japan in their upcoming match. Should they advance, they’ll confront either Fluminese from Brazil or Al-Ahly from Egypt in the championship game.
Despite the desire to clinch the title, the team approaches the tournament with a sense of disappointment after a late-game turnaround against Crystal Palace resulted in dropped points. As they head to Saudi Arabia, they face the possibility of Liverpool stretching their lead to 12 points by the time City returns.
Guardiola acknowledged the less-than-ideal circumstances post the Palace match but emphasized the need for his players to lift themselves and adopt a resilient mindset to reverse their fortunes. He highlighted the importance of starting this turnaround in their forthcoming match against Urawa Red Diamonds, even though a positive outcome would have made the journey more pleasant.
