Manuel Akanji insists that Manchester City still believes that they can win the Champions League and beat every team in Europe.
Despite their struggles this season, Akanji says that the whole dressing room believes that they can repeat their European Cup success from two years ago. City gets Real Madrid or Bayern Munich in Friday's play-off draw and that is not worried about Akanji, because he says that the men of Pep Guardiola still have an aura, which means that no team will want to play them.
It will be Harry Kane or Jude Bellingham, the next one for the city and yet Akanji says that they can eliminate them one of them. When asked if he would rather have it, Staddentiger Akanji said: “It is clearly not the team you want to face, but we are ready and we are looking forward to the challenge. I think we have every team in Europe can beat.
“I don't know what's going on in their heads. I think we can beat every team in Europe, so who comes, we are ready for that challenge.
“Although we did not play as well as before, I think that no team wants to face. I still think we are one of the best teams in Europe. But we have to match it after the game and we didn't do that It is still doing it this year, but I still think we are there. “
City finally ended with 22nd place in the Champions League and only qualified for next month's play-offs thanks to the target difference after overcoming Club Brugge in their last match of the competition phase. It is quite a bit of tumbling for a team that won the trophy less than two years ago and they also struggled poorly in the Premier League and are far from the pace.
But Akanji insists that with the return of injured players and he says that signs of a recurring form against Chelsea should give their faith last weekend prior to the title setup at Arsenal.
Akanji said: “Glad we get the play -offs. Of course we would like us to have reached the top eight, but we couldn't change it anymore, so what we had to do was win. It wasn't easy, but we did it.
“That was not the way we wanted it to be, but here we are now and I am still sure that we can beat who will come next. That's what we have to do now, go match by match.
“We have Arsenal next. We have to recover very well. It is an important game for us. Get rid of it. It will not be easy. But we have to be ready.
“The mood in the dressing room is good. Always if you get good results, the mood is better than when you lose, of course.
“So I hope we can maintain it. I hope we can do everything together and I hope that the dangerous players we have come back and stay healthy and then we will get even better.
“We beat Chelsea on the weekend. I think Chelsea was really a good team this year and I think it was a really good victory on our part, a well -deserved one, we showed a good achievement.
“I still think that if we give everything and we all work together on the field, I still think we are one of the best teams in Europe.”
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