Gary Lineker says he was amazed by what Pep Guardiola did on the touchline during Manchester City’s recent 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur.
Two goals from Erling Haaland secured a crucial victory for the Citizens on Tuesday night to put them two points ahead of Arsenal at the top of the league table with just one game left to play.
A win against West Ham United on Sunday would see the Manchester club win their sixth league title in seven years and become the first side to win four in a row.
Despite seeing the City striker take his tally of league goals for the season to 27 in midweek, one pundit couldn’t help but share his thoughts on what he saw Guardiola do on the touchline during another big incident in the match.
Lineker amazed by Guardiola’s reaction to key moment in Man City vs Spurs
Speaking in a recent episode of The Rest Is Football, Lineker had this to say about what Guardiola did after Stefan Ortega saved a shot from Son Heung-min in a dramatic one-on-one situation during the second half of Tuesday’s game.
He said: “Pep’s reaction I thought was incredible when Son went through. He just collapsed.
“It was a bit like when they played in the Champions League a few years ago against Spurs and it was the opposite way, when the goal was disallowed, the [Raheem] Sterling goal. That time Pep collapsed to the floor in despair, this time it was relief.
“It’s amazing his drive, he has won league after league after league and you can see what it still means.
“I think that thing about when you’re winning competitions, it just gives you a hunger for more and more and more, doesn’t it? He’s remarkable.”
Guardiola channelled every City fan during Son chance
When Manuel Akanji had the ball nabbed off him by Brennan Johnson in the City half to allow Son to run through on goal, the 53-year-old fell to the ground on his back before eventually getting back up once Ortega made his crucial save.
Bearing in mind how the City manager has a reputation for being theatrical on the touchline and how much of a crucial game this was for the club’s title chase, it comes as no surprise to us that he had such a dramatic reaction to Son’s chance in midweek.
Much like the City players and fans, it’s safe to assume that Guardiola would have been delighted that Ortega made this key save to help his side keep a clean sheet and spare Akanji’s blushes, in particular.