MANCHESTER, March 8: With their first home loss in 15 months, Manchester City ended up stumbling into the quarterfinals of the Champions League.
Not that Pep Guardiola was particularly bothered about a surprise 2-1 home loss to Basel.
�This kind of position�is not going to happen in the quarterfinals, where you have a 4-0 (lead) from the first leg. When it�s scary to be (knocked) out, the rhythm will be completely different,� the City coach said. Indeed, it was difficult to draw too many conclusions from what was only City�s fourth loss of the season in all competitions.
A 4-0 win in Switzerland in the first leg three weeks ago made qualification almost a formality for a team that is 16 points clear in the Premier League and one of the favourites to win the Champions League. Guardiola fielded a virtual reserve side at Etihad Stadium for the return match, and making six changes from its previous game disrupted the fluency of the team�s passing and pressing game. � AP
