Manajer Manchester City Pep Guardiola mendesak para pemainnya untuk tampil habis-habisan dalam pertandingan tandang melawan AFC Bournemouth demi menjaga peluang juara Liga Inggris tetap terbuka hingga hari terakhir. Berdasarkan laporan Manchester Evening News, Guardiola mengadopsi filosofi Johan Cruyff untuk memotivasi timnya yang sedang tertinggal lima poin dari Arsenal.
Pertandingan di Stadion Vitality menjadi tantangan berat karena skuad Manchester City hanya memiliki waktu pemulihan yang singkat setelah melakoni laga final Piala FA. Di sisi lain, Bournemouth mempunyai waktu persiapan lebih dari satu minggu untuk mengejar tiket kompetisi Eropa dalam laga kandang terakhir pelatih Andoni Iraola.
Kondisi fisik yang terkuras membuat laga ini diprediksi berjalan sangat sulit bagi tim tamu. Guardiola mengibaratkan tekanan tinggi yang akan diberikan oleh tim tuan rumah seperti situasi yang tidak menyenangkan saat seseorang berada di kursi praktik dokter gigi.
"I've often used it as an analogy for how difficult it is. They don't let you breathe," kata Pep Guardiola, Manajer Manchester City. "When a team is so intense, always when the fatigue comes in the amount of games, they can reduce a little bit this tempo. But with 10 days to prepare that game, I expect a more intense, aggressive and demanding team. And then you have to be smart to read what you have to do.
Manajer asal Spanyol tersebut menyadari bahwa kegagalan meraih poin penuh di markas Bournemouth akan langsung memastikan gelar juara jatuh ke tangan sang rival. Manchester City berharap bisa memperpanjang napas persaingan hingga laga pamungkas musim ini.
"We know if we don't win at Bournemouth, we will congratulate Arsenal. We would love to arrive where it's Crystal Palace away for them," ujar Pep Guardiola.
Target utama armada Manchester City saat ini adalah membawa persaingan ke pekan terakhir agar para pendukung dapat memberikan dukungan langsung di stadion. Upaya tersebut diakui tidak akan mudah mengingat kualitas lawan yang dihadapi.
"We play at home – I wouldn't say Aston Villa is easy – in fact it's completely the opposite. Unai (Emery) is extraordinary and exceptional. But we would love it if on Sunday our people can come at 3pm and maybe what happens at Selhurst Park will be nice," tutur Pep Guardiola.
Skuad Manchester City dipaksa berjuang keras di sisa kompetisi demi mempertahankan gelar juara yang mereka raih musim lalu. Tekanan psikologis dipastikan tetap tinggi meskipun sang pemuncak klasemen hanya membutuhkan hasil imbang pada laga terakhir mereka.
"So we will try to extend it three four or five days and keep the hope that maybe we can win the Premier League again. That is what we are aiming for but we know the task will be so difficult," ucap Pep Guardiola.
Sejarah mencatat bahwa Guardiola pernah membawa Manchester City melewati tiga persaingan gelar juara hingga hari terakhir dan berhasil memenangi semuanya. Pengalaman masa lalu saat memperkuat Barcelona di bawah asuhan Johan Cruyff menjadi inspirasi utama sang manajer dalam menghadapi situasi kritis ini.
"Always I prefer when it's in our hands because you don't have to take a look [at other results] after. Always it's better to depend on us. But the ideal situation never exists," jelas Pep Guardiola.
Kondisi skuad yang dihuni banyak pemain baru dengan menit bermain tinggi dinilai sudah menjadi pencapaian tersendiri bagi klub. Namun, Guardiola menegaskan pentingnya memegang kendali atas nasib sendiri di lapangan.
"If we arrive with nine new players, playing a lot of minutes, being at the end and being there is really good. Once we are here, why not extend one more week, a few more days. But I prefer it to be in our control. When it depends on the other ones, it's something you cannot do. But you never know. The important thing is to be there," kata Pep Guardiola.
Prinsip untuk fokus memenangi pertandingan sendiri tanpa memedulikan hasil tim lain menjadi pesan penutup yang ditekankan kepada para pemain. Manchester City wajib mengamankan kemenangan agar peluang sekecil apa pun di laga pemungkas tetap terjaga.
"I remember Johan Cruyff before those games said, 'Win our games, it's not in our hands,' but we cannot lose the Premier League because they don't win and we don't win. That just cannot happen. We have to. Let's win the game to arrive at the last chance and after that, guys, win our game. After that, it's not in our control. Wait," pungkas Pep Guardiola.
