…And it turns out Man City did not want Liverpool either

Manchester City director of football Txiki Begiristain has said the Premier League champions-elect would have preferred not to have been drawn with Liverpool in Europe.

The pair were drawn together in a mouth-watering Champions League quarter-final tie in Nyon on Friday.

The pair have never met in a UEFA competition, but Liverpool did defeat City 4-3 earlier this year, but were on the end of a 5-0 defeat to Pep Guardiola’s men September in the Premier League.

And Begiristain admitted they would have fancied a European side instead of Jurgen Klopp’s charges.

Quoted on the club’s official Twitter feed, Begiristain said: “We like to travel and to go to another country in the Champions League, but it is what it is.

“We know each other very well, they are a very offensive team. The truth is it is going to be a great couple of games and we are going to see good football.

“In the Champions League there is no time for mistakes, everything has to work, you have to be almost perfect in both games.

“We know the power and the strength of Liverpool – in the league they beat us away and we beat them at home.”

The first legs will be played on Tuesday 3 and Wednesday 4 April, with the return legs on 10 and 11 April.

The semi-final draw will take place on April 13, with the semi-finals on 24/25 April & 1/2 May, before the final on Saturday 26 May in Kiev.

Meanwhile, Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum said he was desperate not to face Pep Guardiola’s men

“No [I don’t want to play Man City], not now, I don’t want to play an English team now,” he told ESPN FC.

“To be fair, we played Manchester City two times and I think the first game we had a red card so that was a difficult game.

“But the second game at home, it was a good game for us. I also think the supporters enjoyed it so even if we play Man City, I think we have two good games.”