Liverpool decision STILL irks Pep Guardiola as Man City boss reacts to VAR confusion

The Citizens claimed a 3-2 first-leg lead in dramatic circumstances at the Veltins Arena, coming from 2-1 down in the final 10 minutes with just 10 men after Leroy Sane’s spectacular free-kick against his old club.

Raheem Sterling then scored a 90th-minute winner after Nicolas Otamendi had earlier been dismissed for a second yellow card.

But there was officiating controversy as Nabil Bentaleb scored two penalties for Schalke. 

The first was awarded after a harsh handball call on Otamendi and the decision took four minutes to be made by Carlos del Cerro Grande, after he had initially pointed for a corner. The referee also issued the first of the Argentine’s two bookings.

Schalke were then awarded a second penalty when Fernandinho pulled back Salif Sane, though VAR was not consulted on that occasion with the referee himself unable to view the incident a second time because his pitchside monitor was not working.

But while Guardiola had no problems with any of the decisions last night, the Catalan tactician once again harked back to a call that was not given last season when VAR was not in use in the Champions League’s knockout phase.

The City boss felt his side should have had a second-half penalty when Raheem Sterling went down under a tackle from Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson inside the box.

The Reds came away with a 3-0 first-leg win at Anfield and without City managing a crucial away goal, Guardiola’s side crashed to a 5-1 aggregate loss as their Premier League rivals progressed to the semi finals.

And Guardiola - who has criticised the lack of a spot-kick for what he believed to be a foul on Sterling several times since that night - mentioned it again as he discussed the pros and cons of VAR after City’s win in Gelsenkirchen.

“It’s a penalty,” said Guardiola of the Otamendi incident. “If we had VAR last season against Liverpool it would’ve changed the result, so…

“I’m a big fan of VAR. The second one is a penalty too and also offside. If we complain about VAR then maybe the offside, but the red card is a red card. We gave away the goals and the red card not VAR.

“When a new system starts it’s like a manager. You arrive and expect to win every game 6-0. VAR needs time, they will improve. 

“The referee told me the machine for him to look at the replays was broken, but I still support the initiative. The referees need help and that is VAR’s intention.”

Some believed Man City could achieve an unprecedented quadruple this season. They take on Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final this Sunday, face a winnable FA Cup quarter-final tie against Swansea City and also sit atop the Premier League table.

But having consistently played down their chances of a first ever European success, two-time Champions League-winning manager Guardiola has again warned City are not prepared to go all the way on the continent just yet.

“We’re not ready to fight for the Champions League, but the result is good,” he added.

“I know how difficult it is to play in Germany. They didn’t have a shot on target and scored twice. If they’d scored a third or fourth, then maybe we’re out. Hopefully or fans can help us for the second leg.

“To go away from home and score three goals, and the way we reacted at 10 men, we played incredibly well. I’m delighted but it’s not enough [to win the competition].

"It's not over. We gave too much to the opponent to be in the game. The game was good, the second half we played with incredible personality. Like at Anfield when we lost 3-0.

"The game was played good, in the end the quality was from Leroy - the big players have the quality. The action from Raheem delivered too."