Defender Aymeric Laporte has vowed not to hide after the defensive horror show that led to the departure of Manchester City’s Champions League.
The Spanish defender spoke out with his expensively assembled side and boss Pep Guardiola resented for their failure to even advance to the fourth final stage.
Laporte was greeted by Moussa Dembele before the Lyon substitute defeated the offside trap and scored her second in the 3-1 win.
Laporte said: “Just to be clear: I will not hide, I am a footballer, but a man in the first place, we have all made mistakes in this game, and I also take my responsibility for the poor team performance last night.
(Image: POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
“But this decision is hard to accept, especially in a crucial qualifier AND with the help of VAR.”
Laporte posted images of support for him in Rio Ferdinand and Gary Lineker’s BT Sport studio, adding: “Can’t say @ rioferdy5 is a big City fan, is he?”
Ferdinand had said in his analysis: ‘When I’m in that field, I think it’s a definite foul. It must be. ‘
Lineker replied, “He is the one who scored.”
Ferdinand added: “There is 100 percent contact. I do not understand how they can not call that. There will be people who espouse conspiracy theories when they are City fans, but I believe there is a foul and the man continues to score the goal as well. ”
(Image: Getty Images)
After the match, Guardiola refuses to apologize, despite failing to regain the last eight of the competition.
He said: “I do not want to talk about the circumstances [of Dembele’s first goal]to, it seems I find complaints or excuses. We’re out. We did a lot of good things and in the end it was not enough.
“We made mistakes in both boxes at key moments and that’s why we’re out. We scored a wonderful goal, but unfortunately we missed another.
“You have to be perfect, you can’t make mistakes.”
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