MX23RW : Monday, July 1 01:49:28| >> :120:10826:10826:
[monks data]
Attendance: 49,308
Manchester City logo
Champions League | Group Stage
Oct 22, 2019 at 8pm UK
 
Atalanta logo

5-1

Aguero (34', 38' pen.), Sterling (58', 64', 69')
FT(HT: 2-1)
Malinovskiy (28' pen.)

Joao Cancelo wary of Atalanta threat in Champions League

Joao Cancelo wary of Atalanta threat in Champions League
© Reuters
The right-back moved from Juventus in the summer to join Pep Guardiola's bid for glory.

Joao Cancelo believes Manchester City are well placed to win the Champions League.

The Portugal right-back swapped Juventus for the Etihad Stadium in the summer in order to be part of Pep Guardiola's glory quest.

He feels the team he has left are still capable of winning the competition, but the opportunity to work under Guardiola was too good to turn down.

Joao Cancelo says he joined Manchester City to learn from Pep Guardiola
Joao Cancelo says he joined Manchester City to learn from Pep Guardiola (Nick Potts/PA)

Speaking at a press conference ahead of Tuesday's Group C clash with Atalanta, the 25-year-old said: "When I came here, I came here also to learn. Pep, I think, is the best manager in today's football.

"I came here to learn from him, and I think that when I play for him I will always learn something and that's exactly what I'm doing.

"City are one of the teams that can win the Champions League – no doubt about it.

"I've been aiming to win this competition since I was a child. Juventus also want to win but I came here because this is my type of football."

Cancelo was happy to bide his time before getting his chance at Manchester City
Cancelo was happy to bide his time before getting his chance at Manchester City (Barrington Coombs/PA)

Cancelo, who has also played for Benfica, Valencia and Inter Milan, joined City in a £60million deal in the summer.

It has taken him time to reach the levels of intensity demanded by Guardiola and to claim a place in the side but he has started City's last three matches.

Cancelo said: "It's true it took me some time to learn but what is important is that the club wins.

"I chose to come here. I was happy to wait for my moment and when I finally had an opportunity to play, I did well and the team won."

City have begun their Champions League campaign with convincing wins over Shakhtar Donetsk and Dinamo Zagreb, both of whom have beaten Atalanta.

Yet the unheralded Italian side are currently third in Serie A and finished in that position last season.

From his experience of playing against them in recent years, Cancelo expects it could be a difficult encounter.

He said: "They're a strong team, a physical team. Atalanta press very well.

"They have players that are technically skilled and I believe it will be a difficult match. We will have to play well because they have some quality players.

"It will be a lively, interesting match. I hope we will get the three points because obviously if we get to nine points, we will be in a more secure position in the group."

ID:375799: cacheID:375799:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:6600:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Joao Cancelo pictured in Manchester City gear on August 10, 2019
Read Next:
Cancelo: 'Guardiola the best manager in the world'
>
rhs 2.0
Euro 2024 fixtures header
Monday, July 1
 
5pm
 
8pm
Tuesday, July 2
 
5pm
 
8pm
Friday, July 5
 
5pm
Saturday, July 6
Tuesday, July 9
Wednesday, July 10
Sunday, July 14
Tables header RHS

Group A

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Germany Germany32107
Q Switzerland Switzerland31205
3 Hungary Hungary31023
4 Scotland flag Scotland30121

Group B

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Spain Spain33009
Q Italy Italy31114
3 Croatia Croatia30212
4 Albania national flag Albania30121

Group C

TeamPWDLPTS
Q England flag England31205
Q Denmark Denmark30303
Q Slovenia Slovenia30303
4 Serbia Serbia30212

Group D

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Austria Austria32016
Q France France31205
Q Netherlands Netherlands31114
4 Poland Poland30121

Group E

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Romania Romania31114
Q Belgium Belgium31114
Q Slovakia Slovakia31114
4 Ukraine Ukraine31114

Group F

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Portugal Portugal32016
Q Turkey Turkey32016
Q Georgia Georgia31114
4 Czech Republic Czech Republic30121


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!