Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has backed striker Erling Haaland to rediscover his best form when they host Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final after the Norwegian failed to find the net at the Santiago Bernabeu.

With Messi's future up in the air, Guardiola gave an interview to ESPN in which he assured that the Argentine World Cup-winning captain "will do the impossible to return to Barcelona"

After beating Real Madrid 4-3 in a thriller in the first-leg last year in Manchester, City saw the Spanish giants fight back from the brink of elimination to beat them 3-1 after extra time and get to the final.

The City coach said his team would try and capitalise on an "opportunity" instead of aiming to make Carlo Ancelotti's reigning champions pay for eliminating them at the same stage last season

After the German midfielder had scored a first-half brace to put the Premier League leaders 2-0 up against Leeds United, Guardiola yelled from the sidelines for Haaland to take the penalty they had been awarded in the closing minutes

Manchester City's legacy under Pep Guardiola will not be defined by the trophies they have won but instead by the joy they have brought to fans, the Spaniard said as his side edge closer to winning their fifth Premier League title in six seasons.

Manchester City are on the verge of moving to the top of the Premier League as they will leapfrog title rivals Arsenal if they beat Fulham on Sunday but manager Pep Guardiola is taking nothing for granted even though his side are now favourites to win a third successive top flight title.

Guardiola said their next three games will "dictate a lot"

Pep Guardiola labelled Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland as "extraordinary" after the Manchester City stars destroyed Arsenal in a 4-1 victory that put the champions in control of the Premier League title race.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has urged fans to turn up the volume in their top-of-the-table clash with Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday as his side look to take control of the Premier League title race.

Guardiola made six changes from the team, which drew at Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday, with a Riyad Mahrez hat-trick securing City a 3-0 win and a spot in the final, where they will face either Manchester United or Brighton & Hove Albion

The row between Bayern Munich team mates Sadio Mane and Leroy Sane could actually make the German side more dangerous in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said.

Haaland scored twice in City's 3-1 win over beleaguered Leicester City to equal Mo Salah's record tally of 32 goals in a 38-game Premier League season

Manchester City's medical team is working round the clock to keep key striker Erling Haaland fit for the season run-in, manager Pep Guardiola said ahead of Saturday's Premier League game at home to Leicester City.

In the 12 years since Guardiola last lifted the European Cup as Barcelona boss, he has often been accused of over-complicating things in the Champions League knockout stages

City host Bayern in the Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday as Guardiola continues his quest to lead the team to their first title in Europe's elite club competition

Haaland has now scored 44 times in his debut season with the English champions, including 30 in 27 Premier League appearances

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said defender Kyle Walker cannot play in an inverted full back role in his system, explaining his decision to leave the England international on the bench for their last two Premier League games.

Burnley manager Vincent Kompany endured a nightmare return to Manchester City on Saturday as Erling Haaland scored his sixth hat-trick of the season in a 6-0 rout that sent Pep Guardiola's men into the FA Cup semi-finals.

Haaland has scored a remarkable 32 goals so far in his first season with City, but the Norway striker still divides opinions as the Premier League champions lack their previous fluency with him in the side