Pep Guardiola has labeled Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool as the “biggest challenge” of his coaching career, surpassing his experiences with Real Madrid. This statement follows Manchester City’s recent defeat by the Spanish side, losing 5-1 on aggregate in the Champions League round of 16.
Vinícius Júnior scored a brace in the second leg at Manchester, leading to a 2-1 win for Madrid after Federico Valverde had scored three goals in a 3-0 victory at the Bernabéu the previous week.
This marks the third successive season in which Guardiola’s City have been eliminated from the Champions League by the 15-time European champions. However, during his post-match press conference, Guardiola insisted that Madrid have not been his greatest rivals.
“No, my biggest challenge was Jürgen Klopp with Liverpool during my time here,” Guardiola told a Spanish journalist. “You were in Spain, so perhaps you didn’t realize the significance of that competition.”
“This has been a valuable learning experience for the club, which was not part of European football 12 or 13 years ago. We’ve played Real Madrid multiple times with this current generation, and while they have won as much as we have, they have knocked us out more often. But they know how we play.”
Over the course of his career, Guardiola has faced Madrid 30 times, beginning during his tenure at Barcelona and continuing with Bayern Munich and City in European competitions.
His record against Madrid stands at 14 wins, 6 draws, and 10 losses. However, in recent seasons, Madrid has eliminated City from the Champions League in 2022, 2024, 2025, and now 2026.
In 2023, Guardiola’s City defeated Madrid in the semifinals, which contributed to their historic treble. His head-to-head record against Klopp is closely matched.
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While in the Bundesliga, Guardiola faced Klopp eight times, yielding four victories for Guardiola, three for Klopp, and one draw. In the Premier League, Klopp narrowly edged ahead with eight wins to Guardiola’s six and eight draws.
Despite this, during their respective tenures at City and Liverpool, Guardiola secured six titles compared to Klopp’s single title. Defender Trent Alexander-Arnold, a pivotal member of those Liverpool teams, joined Madrid last summer.
“Winning here was gratifying; a satisfying victory for us,” he told Prime Video Sport. “They have taken many Premier League medals from me and Liverpool. Playing here has always been enjoyable; there’s a feeling that these are the biggest matches. City is a top club, and our mindset was to come here and win.”
Madrid is set to face either Bayern Munich or Atalanta in the quarterfinals, with Bayern having won the first leg 6-1. Meanwhile, City is gearing up for the upcoming EFL Cup final against Arsenal.