Garbiel Jesus was man of two games against Madrid, says Pep Guardiola
Aug 08, 2020
Manchester [UK], Aug 8 : After progressing to the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Manchester City's manager Pep Guardiola praised Gabriel Jesus for giving a match-winning performance against Real Madrid in the round-of-16 fixtures.
City were 2-1 ahead after winning the first-leg match in February this year and then the side welcomed Madrid to the Etihad Stadium on Friday (local time).
Jesus had scored the equaliser for City in the first-leg match, and he also ended up scoring in the second-leg match, which City won 2-1, and as a result, the side defeated Madrid 4-2 on aggregate.
"This competition will punish you - but Gabriel made his contribution. He is the best guy at making these kinds of actions. Gabriel was the man of these two games. He scored in Madrid, won the penalty, and then today he made an assist and scored a goal," Goal.com quoted Guardiola as saying.
"Gabriel always helps with more than goals, but for a striker, it's important to score. For big players, it's important to show on the biggest stage. He has done it twice and he made a big step to say: Here I am, I can win games myself," he added.
In the second-leg match between Madrid and City, the latter opened the scoring when Raheem Sterling registered the first goal.
Then, a Karim Benzema header levelled up the scoring charts for Madrid, but Jesus scored the final goal to make City progress to the quarter-finals.
Manchester City will now face Lyon in the quarter-finals of the Champions League on August 15.
