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Manchester City fans were baffled after Pep Guardiola didn't make any substitutions during their 1-1 draw with RB Leipzig.
City were pegged back with just 20 minutes to go in the first leg of their round-of-16 tie in Germany when Josko Gvardiol's header cancelled out Riyad Mahrez's opener. But Guardiola opted to stick with the team that started the match rather than introduce fresh legs.
Leipzig, in contrast, made the maximum amount of five subs while City became the first team to make none in a Champions League game since Manchester United against Juventus in October 2018, despite having the likes of Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez available.
READ MORE: Man City fans fume as Leipzig star 'plays volleyball' in last minute but no pen
Fans fumed online with one tweeting: "I’m sorry, but I can’t fathom why Pep Guardiola didn’t make a single change this evening. Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez should’ve been sent on the minute that Leipzig equaliser hit the back of the net. I really can’t make sense of Pep’s decision making there."
"Pep is very stubborn," commented a second, while a third claimed: "This guy will be Man City’s downfall." A fourth argued: "He’s so stubborn he thinks making subs makes it look like he got the starting eleven wrong."
And a fifth raged: "This stubbornness gets you sent out of the Champions League. It’s happened before! It will happen again."
Is Pep too smart for his own good? Let us know in the comments section.
When quizzed about his decision in his post-match press conference, Guardiola responded: "I saw the team good… I thought about Phil, but in the end I decided to continue."
For all his genius, the Spaniard has often been criticised for his lack of substitutions or making them too late in matches for players to have an impact.
City will now have to win the return leg in three weeks' time when they welcome Leipzig to the Etihad.
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- Pep Guardiola
- Manchester City FC
- Champions League
- Premier League
- RB Leipzig FC
- Bundesliga
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