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Among the countless qualities demonstrated by Pep Guardiola during his tenure at City, overseeing a second successive run to the Carabao Cup final confirmed that he also deserved the credit of having exploited his own gold mixture in League Cup.
Guardiola, of course, has long had the reputation of being one of the game's great alchemists.
He is a coach with the rarest ability to be able to shape individual elements into a coherent unit, combining beauty and beauty with a murderous and unforgiving edge.
Pep provided many illustrations of this experience during his trophy-laden journeys to Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
On the contrary, he has improved and strengthened his status since arriving at City in the summer of 2016.
In fact, it could be argued that Guardiola's commitment to possession-based and very pressing attack football, first developed at Nou Camp, has helped redefine English play.
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And the city manager accomplished another remarkable feat by guiding the Blues to a second consecutive final of the Carabao Cup.
For the blues, the boss has managed to achieve this other balancing act the rarest and most delicate: perfect an ideal blend of youth and experience through our progression to the test Sunday with Chelsea.
While many clubs tend to neglect the EFL Cup in their list of priorities, the city manager immediately treated the competition with the utmost respect.
His selections have always demonstrated an unwavering determination to succeed, as well as a willingness to provide a number of exciting young players in the city with a high-level platform on which to pursue their football development.
Characteristics
Pep set the formula for success last season when the Blues set the stage for success as we won the 2018 Carabao Cup with style thanks to prodigious young emerging talents such as Phil Foden and Oleks Zinchenko shine on the big stage alongside their more experienced colleagues.
This season, the Blues boss has stayed true to these fundamental principles and beliefs while providing even greater opportunities and exposure to a group of exciting young players.
And, throughout his career, the only part of his approach was to respect the competition and our opponents as much as possible.
Pep settled his selection stall with his lineup for our opening match of the third round at Oxford in September, where we recorded a 3-0 win.
Backed by a solid spine of experience in the formidable form of Vincent Kompany, John Stones, Danilo and signature of registration Riyad Mahrez, Guardiola also offered a senior first match to a young goalkeeper Aro Muric with teenager Foden also scoring his first senior goal for the club.
Promising youngster Adrian Bernarbe of the Academy also made his first appearance as a senior.
After laying the template so successfully, Guardiola resumed it during our fourth round home encounter against Fulham on November 1, where the Cottagers were duly dispatched 2-0.
Once again, there was a spine of experience and reliable knowledge, courtesy of Kevin De Bruyne, Gabriel Jesus, Fabian Delph, Kompany and Stones, complemented by the youth and exuberance of Muric, Foden and Zinchenko alongside Brahim Diaz, two goals, who then moved to Real Madrid.
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As in Oxford, there was also a cameo for another talent from the exciting club EDS club: French midfielder Claudio Gomes who made a big impact on our 2018 summer tour of the United States.
Youth was back in the spotlight as we defeated Leicester City on penalties in the quarter-finals for the second year in a row. The Blues triumphed 3-1 in penalty kicks after the two teams were stuck 1-1 in regulation time.
Muric was again entrusted to the goal and more than reimbursed the confidence of the bosses, becoming the hero of City when shooting the goal by saving two shots from the Fox.
The 18-year-old Spanish center-back Eric Garcia also made his team debut with an accomplished and confident performance on his senior bow alongside personalities such as Nicolas Otamendi, Rocks, Kyle Walker and De Bruyne.
Our two-legged semi-final against League One, Burton Albion, offered another key showcase to Muric and Garcia, but it's the biggest City pros, inspired by Gabriel Jesus, who scored four goals, which opened the way. Nigel Clough's team was beaten 9-0 at the break. Etihad in the semifinals go.
It was a tough night for Burton, but thinking about the result, Guardiola had the perfect answer for those who might have questioned the club's approach.
Interviews
"Scoring is the best way to respect competition and opponents," Pep told the press release.
"We do not have a lot of titles in our museum, so whenever we have the chance to try to play a final, we have to take it and be hungry.
"The only way to do it is to take it seriously."
With such a lead in the deposit bank, the Blues were able to offer even more opportunities to our next generation in the semi-final first leg.
That meant another senior start for another of our exciting Academy hopefuls – this time in the form of 18-year-old offensive midfielder Ian Carlo Poveda, who performed the senior's ramp-up with aplomb.
Felix Nmecha – Lucas' younger brother – joined him in the second half. He also managed to bow to the blues after being named an unused substitute in our home match against Hoffenheim in the Champions League.
We are now looking forward to Sunday's main event at Wembley to see how Guardiola is combining its resources as City looks to expand its formidable tournament record even further as we aim for a fourth League Cup success in five years.
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