Pep Guardiola enjoyed a stunning night for Manchester City on Wednesday night (Picture: Getty Images)
Rio Ferdinand revealed he exchanged texts with Pep Guardiola just a couple of hours before Manchester City hammered Real Madrid 4-0 in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final.
Bernardo Silva scored twice before Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez wrapped up the scoring on a sensational night for the Premier League champions.
They set up a Champions League final in Istanbul against Inter Milan as they hunt down a treble, looking likely to win the Premier League again, while they face Manchester United in the FA Cup final.
Manchester City have been immense in recent weeks and months and Ferdinand revealed how confident manager Guardiola felt before the game, texting the former England defender and telling him to believe in his side.
‘I text Pep Guardiola before the game saying good luck,’ Ferdinand said on BT Sport. ‘He text saying, “we beat them two years ago we’ll beat them again. Believe!”
‘I said, I believe you, I hope you do it.
‘The confidence he had two or three hours before the game, he’s sending me a text like that. That is pure confidence in the detail he’s gone through leading up to this game and the confidence he’s got in those players.’
It was a completely dominant performance from Guardiola’s side who brushed aside the challenge of the defending champions.
‘I don’t think a lot of teams would do that to Real Madrid,’ Jack Grealish said on BT Sport. ‘When we play here, I don’t know what it is, the fans, playing on our home pitch, we just feel unstoppable.’
City will take on Inter on 10 June in Istanbul for the biggest prize in European football.
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‘The confidence he had two or three hours before the game, he’s sending me a text like that.’
