Guardiola hails Forest resilience after hard-fought City win

Pep Guardiola admitted Manchester City had to draw on “unbelievable” mentality to secure a testing 2–1 victory over Nottingham Forest on Saturday, as goals from Tijjani Reijnders and a late Rayan Cherki strike sealed the points for the former champions.

Forest, who equalised through Omari Hutchinson after City’s opener, pushed Guardiola’s side all the way in difficult winter conditions.

Guardiola was effusive in his praise for the hosts, singling out the work done by Forest boss Sean Dyche and the physical challenge his team posed.

He said, “What a team Sean Dyche has made again. That’s a really, really, really big three points. They are an incredible team; the way that they play, they do it unbelievably. Igor wins all of the balls. They have a top-quality team.”

The City manager also referenced Forest’s performances on the European stage, underlining the scale of the task his players faced.

“This team was in the Champions League but for one or two games last season and now in European competitions. A fantastic team and a tough place to come, and in wintertime,” he added.

Guardiola revealed that City had spent days preparing mentally for the game.

He added, “We talked a lot about this in the last few days with the players. Winter time, at Nottingham Forest, you have to be there, there, there. Today if we are not ready, then we do not win that game. The mentality was unbelievable, so I’m really pleased again for the guys.”

The Spaniard also highlighted the impact of half-time adjustments, crediting assistant Pep Lijnders for his role in reshaping the side as the game wore on.

“He is so good. He is a top manager. Sometimes people think, ‘he’s the assistant,’ well maybe I am his assistant. We talked at half-time and changed the shape a little bit,” he added