Thrilling to watch but Man City lack pragmatic steel in Europe

MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) - Steel and pragmatism are words rarely associated with Pep Guardiola’s thrilling Manchester City side, but they are characteristics that would have served them well in their Champions exit at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.

Such is the intensity of the Premier League title race that City will have little time to contemplate and analyse their European demise in such dramatic fashion against Mauricio Pochettino’s team.

They are back in action on Saturday against Spurs with no room for error as Liverpool continue their march at the top of the table. Then on Wednesday they have the small matter of the Manchester derby at Old Trafford.

While City manager Guardiola would never admit to having priorities in terms of which titles matter the most, the way he has talked about the Champions League suggests that is the one that would have brought him the greatest satisfaction.