Pep Guardiola's bleak prediction on Man City overcoming Real Madrid - 'We have a one percent chance'

Madrid, who won their record 16th Champions League title last season by defeating Borussia Dortmund in the final at Wembley, came from behind to secure a 3-2 victory in the first leg at the Etihad. They scored twice in the final minutes to overturn a 2-1 deficit, with two goals from Erling Haaland for City.

City's record at the Bernabéu has been tough, with only one win there - a 2-1 victory in the round of 16 back in February 2020. Now, they must beat Carlo Ancelotti's side in Madrid to avoid an early exit from this year's competition.

Guardiola, who has previously managed Barcelona and Bayern Munich, acknowledged that his team faces a huge challenge in Madrid but believes they still have a slim chance of progressing.

"The margin to win in Bernabéu in that position (3-2 down), everybody knows that if you ask before the game, the percentage to go through, I don't know, we arrive at 1 percent, or I don't know what," Guardiola said.

"It will be minimal, but as much as you have a chance, we will try, that's for sure, you know? The chance is minor because the result was not good - five minutes ago, with 2-1, it would be different.

"But with 2-3, the chance is less, but as much as you have a chance, we are going to take it, and we'll see what happens."

This season has been the worst for City under Guardiola since he took over in 2016, with 12 losses across all competitions and their title hopes dashed by mid-season. However, Guardiola remains hopeful that Saturday's 4-0 victory over Newcastle could spark a recovery in the final stretch of the season.

"Listen, there are many, many games that we didn't play the level we play, and at the end, we lost it," Guardiola said.

"And that was not just the three points, it's how it is affecting our minds for the next game. It happened a lot of times. This season, the reality is that we have been miles, miles away." 

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