Manuel Pellegrini admits that the draw against Real Madrid is special for him and Manchester City, and that his current employers are where they should be as he comes to the end of his third and final season.
During that time the Chilean has seen his side think and play like a big European rival and City have won the Premier League and Capital One Cup under his tutelage.
However, this is the first time they have got through to the Champions Leaguesemi-finals, facing Real at home on Tuesday and then at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu a week later.
You have been at Manchester City three years and now have an historic match for the team, if not for you too.
“They have been three happy years at an extraordinary club.
“We have achieved great things: we are the highest-scoring team in Premier League history, we have won the league and now we are in the Champions League.
“When I arrived, City had never got through the first phase and in the past two seasons we were knocked out by Barcelona after making many mistakes.”
When at Real Madrid, you gave the impression that the team lacked one or two players to have the necessary strength, was that the case?
“We were a team in transition and had some evident flaws and we were missing two key players who were transferred.
“One was Arjen Robben, who won the league with Bayern Munich, the other was Wesley Sneijder, who won the league with Inter Milan.
“Both these players were involved in the Champions League final at the Bernabeu.
“It annoyed me to think that they asked to leave in the pre-season but Jorge Valdano convinced me so I didn’t disagree.
Bron: Marca
