Pep's 100th UCL night: milestone, meltdown, and mission for Man City

Pep Guardiola lives in a world built on trophies, anniversaries and relentless winning - so when defeat arrives, it lands like an earthquake. His tense stare on the touchline, the spat with Bruno Guimaraes, the bitter words squeezed out after the loss to Newcastle… it all fits. Pep simply isn't wired to lose.

They say the great coaches reject defeat as a concept. Guardiola is Exhibit A, and luckily for him, he hasn't had to taste it often.

Tonight's clash with Bayer Leverkusen at the Etihad (11 pm) comes wrapped in symbolism: Pep's 100th Champions League match as Manchester City manager! And the numbers tell a familiar story - dominance. Or to put it in numbers - 62 wins, 19 draws, 18 defeats. Goal difference: 234-111.

Across his entire Champions League career with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City, he has now stood on the touchline 183 times, winning 115. Only Carlo Ancelotti (218 matches) and Sir Alex Ferguson (190) have coached more in UEFA's elite competition - though Pep edges Ferguson in wins and is closing fast on the Italian.

But ahead of this milestone night, another image has dominated the headlines: Guardiola approaching a pitch-side cameraman at the weekend, frustration spilling over visibly.

"I felt ashamed when I saw the footage," Pep admitted pre-Leverkusen. "I apologised to him immediately. I am who I am. After 1,000 matches I can tell you I'm not perfect. I make big mistakes. But one thing is certain: I always defend this club. From experience, if we want to win the league, we need 100 points… or 98. Anything less and we won't do it."

Football champagne! Magpies stun City in one of the best games of Premier League season

City sit third in the Premier League and well-placed in Europe, but questions inevitably came: is the quadruple still mathematically alive?

"When you lose four of your first 12 matches, it means you must improve a lot," Guardiola replied. "Mathematically, everything is possible. But did you ever hear me talking about four trophies in December, even in the season we won them? No."

Still, the Champions League equation is simple - 10 of 12 points collected so far. Beat Leverkusen tonight and City are virtually into the last eight of the league phase.

"We forgot the Newcastle loss immediately," Pep added. "We played four incredible games, even away at Monaco we were excellent. Four more ahead - two at home, two away - and now comes the Bundesliga's third-placed team. A massive match if we want to be among the best eight. A win now and one more point later… we'd be through. All the focus is on what we must do."

City remain without Rodri, though Guardiola believes his return is close. Mateo Kovacic is also unavailable. Leverkusen, meanwhile, travel without suspended Robert Andrich, while Fernandez, Lucas, Palacios and Tapsoba are all injured.

Leverkusen coach Kasper Hjulmand embraces the challenge:

"This is the Champions League - we're facing one of the best teams in Europe. We love these games. Nothing better. We're all excited."

FALSE 10: And after all, you're my Wonderwall

And yes, he knows exactly what awaits them up front.

"Erling Haaland is one of the best strikers in the world - that's clear. We analysed him in detail, but you cannot completely neutralise a player like that. We focus more on stopping City collectively than individually. Their structure is strong, especially in attack. We want as much possession as possible. It will take a huge effort, but we're ready."

Milestone or pressure-cooker - for Guardiola, it's all the same. Tonight, win number 63 would feel like the perfect antidote.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 5

Tuesday

20.45: (3.50) Ajax (3.65) Benfica (2.15)

20.45: (1.80) Galatasaray (4.10) St.Gilloise (4.40)

23.00: (3.30) Bodo (3.70) Juventus (2.20)

23.00: (2.25) Chelsea (4.00) Barcelona (3.00)

23.00: (1.90) Dortmund (3.80) Villareal (4.20)

23.00: (1.27) Man.City (7.00) Leverkusen (10.5)

23.00: (1.27) Napoli (6.25) Qarabag (9.50)

23.00: (3.00) Olympique Marseille (3.50) Newcastle (2.45)

23.00: (3.05) Slavia Praha (3.45) Ath.Bilbao (2.45)

Wednesday

20.45: (1.35) Copenhagen (5.50) Kairat Almaty (10.0)

20.45: (5.10) Paphos (3.70) Monaco (1.70)

23.00: (2.25) Arsenal (3.65) Bayern (3.20)

23.00: (2.35) Atl.Madrid (3.50) Inter (3.20)

23.00: (2.60) Eintr.Frankfurt (3.50) Atalanta (2.85)

23.00: (1.35) Liverpool (5.80) PSV (9.00)

23.00: (7.20) Olympiakos (5.20) Real Madrid (1.42)

23.00: (1.37) PSG (5.10) Tottenham (7.75)

23.00: (1.70) Sporting (4.30) Club Brugge (4.80)

***odds are subject to change***