Pep Guardiola reflected on Romelu Lukaku’s memorable miss in Inter’s Champions League final loss to Manchester City last season, using it as an example of fine margins in football.
In the final match of Europe’s premier club competition last term, the Belgian striker famously missed a header from less than six yards out from the Citizens’ goal in the 89th minute, allowing them to escape 1-0 winners and secure their historic Treble under Guardiola.
The match was Lukaku’s last for Inter before his eventual transfer to Roma that summer. On the other side of the coin, it was the crowning achievement for Guardiola and his Manchester City, finally ending their wait for European silverware following the investments of the last 15 years, further imprinting Guardiola’s name in the history books.
Guardiola remembers Lukaku miss
Speaking in a press conference via Cityxtra ahead of Manchester City’s FA Cup semi-final with Chelsea, Guardiola was asked if his opponents tell him that his side are ‘unbelievable’.
“No, I don’t think with them, but I have the feeling. This is how I would feel. I admire Liverpool for that, so whatever happens this season, I admire Liverpool.
“When I said Jurgen, Liverpool always has been, because it’s the team that faced us, the real, real contender that faced us face to face and goes against you.
“And for six, seven years. And I don’t judge until at the end you lift the trophy or don’t lift the trophy for the last curve, the last corner, it’s the amount of games during seasons by seasons, being there.
“And this is the most difficult thing, and being in that position we were close, still fighting for the titles, and one month left. I would sign every season to arrive with one month left fighting for the three titles.
“In my career, until the end, it’s what I dream of. It’s the best. When my teams do this it’s because you have been really good that season. And after we win the final…
“Always I put the example, we lost last game on penalties when we were really, really good, and we won the Champions League with (Romelu) Lukaku three metres, three metres, alone, in the middle of the goal, fell to Ederson!
“And Ederson saves it. And we are an incredible team, how good is Manchester City. And last game we did everything, and we could not score.
“These margins, at this level, is… and you have to accept it. It’s the stars, I don’t know, it’s football. I would say it’s not about Inter, or City, or Madrid or Barcelona, it’s football. Football is like that.
“It happened in Madrid, it happened in Atletico Madrid, it happened against Chelsea, it happened against Inter, Inter Milan against us, or Chelsea against us, it’s football. And you have to accept it.
“But what is important is I will sign arriving in those stages, in this press conference, after quarter-finals, semi-finals, for the fact of fighting for the titles? That means in every game you have been who you are. And there’s no doubts about that, this team is unbelievable in that sense. Unbelievable.”