Pep Guardiola believes that Manchester City has found their souls again by coming back to club bridges to press in the play -offs of the Champions League.
But the European City campaign is not becoming easier, with Giants Bayern Munich and Real Madrid who were on the guard after a night when Aston Villa insured a top eight finish and progression directly in the last 16.
Morgan Rogers hit a memorable hat trick for Villa beating Celtic 4-2 and City had to come from behind to Rand along Bruges.
“We were 45 minutes away from outside,” said Guardiola. 'We were gone, but if you play nothing to lose, you will move forward.
'Sometimes if you win, you are afraid of what you could lose. We had nothing to lose. In the second half we lifted our souls and our hearts were free. '
An annual meeting with Real or a reunion with former captain Vincent Kompany is on the Horizon in fourteen days and Guardiola is cheerful about the prospects of his party.
City can register three new signing sessions for the knockout phases to give more energy to an outdated team.
“They are all better now than we do, but I don't know what will happen in two weeks,” the Catalan added.
'We take nothing for granted. In two weeks we will be better than we do. New signing sessions, players are coming back. We will see how we are coming.
'I don't know if they like to play against us. We will face them. One is the king of the competition, the other is the second or third king.
“My wish was to have the team back, fit. We played this competition with a thousand problems. Tomorrow the mentality, the vibes, will change and I am pretty sure that we will cause problems for Madrid or Munich. These players have something special. '
Two fire services were called to extinguish an eruption of a merchandise stand pre-match, told with supporters to leave the area in the forecourt and Tourniquets closed.
Guardiola added: “When I saw the fire for the game and the score during the break, the journalist had all their headlines.”
In the meantime, Rogers in Villa Park claimed that it was the crown evening of his short career.
“Absolutely the highlight of my career so far,” said the English international.
'It is a crazy experience and a crazy game to be part of. It is a huge achievement and we must be proud of ourselves. We are hungry and the ride and we have a manager who pushes us every day. '
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