Porto (Portugal) (AFP)

Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola insisted on Saturday on his team's "exceptional season", despite the defeat in the Champions League final against Chelsea (1-0), which does not erase the English Championship and the League Cup won earlier.

Q: How can we avoid such a defeat for next season?

A: "It's too early to talk about it. We played 61 out of 62 possible matches (Manchester City did not play the FA Cup final, eliminated in the semi-final by Chelsea, Editor's note), in a difficult context with the pandemic. If we analyze the match, we are sad, of course, we must learn from that. But the season remains exceptional. The players gave everything on the field. We will try to return to the final, being stronger."

Q: One shot on target, why so few chances?

A: Riyad (Mahrez) had a chance at the end ... We knew that with Chelsea, it was difficult to create chances.

It was a close match.

For a first final, we played a very good match, we showed courage, especially in the first period.

The players gave their all.

I want to congratulate them. "

Q: Do you have any regrets?

A: "I don't know ... The decisions I made, all that ... The game was exceptional, since it was our first time in the final. Chelsea are a very good team and we competed. In the second half we deserved to score a goal, but we didn't score it. "

# photo1

Interview at a press conference

© 2021 AFP