No disaster if Man City fails in Europe again: Pep

City has never reached the CL semi-finals under Guardiola, having been knocked out in the quarters by Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the last two seasons. City won an unprecedented domestic treble last season and, while Europe is the final frontier left to conquer, Guardiola said failing to do so again this season would not “change his life”.

“Of course, I’ll try but I won’t live the next 10 months thinking it will be a disaster if I don’t win the CL,” he told a media conference on Monday. “I want to win it but if I don’t... I’m not going to kill myself. If I don’t do it next year, we are going to try again. Sometimes you take a few years, sometimes you take longer.”

The Spaniard added the club’s fan base did not value European success because of City’s poor history in the competition. “I know for the fans the Premier League is the most exciting,” he said. “They prefer to win the PL than the CL. In Liverpool and (Manchester) United, who have a lot of CLs in the trophy (cabinet), they are used to being there. Our club was at home or in bars for decades watching them. That’s about the culture of the club. I feel we’re taking steps.”

City hosts Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb in its second Group C match on Tuesday and Guardiola has problems in defence, with defenders John Stones and Aymeric Laporte injured and makeshift centre back Fernandinho a doubt for the game. Nicolas Otamendi is the only senior central defender available and Guardiola said he could deploy youngsters Taylor Harwood-Bellis (17) or Eric Garcia (18).

Sarri says Juve needs to 'lighten up'

Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri believes his side needs to enjoy itself more if it is going to have any chance of ending its 24-year wait for the CL trophy.

The 60-year-old Sarri will oversee his first CL match at home in the Allianz Stadium on Tuesday. Juventus hosts Bayer Leverkusen in its second Group D clash, having been held 2-2 at Atletico Madrid in its opener. "The CL is really the top for a player and coach, but at the same time we should also have fun," said Sarri.

"At the moment, it's difficult for Italian teams to be among the favourites. English teams are favourites for obvious reasons but we should be easier on ourselves. The idea is to really cheer up a little bit. Our goal is to go all the way, but it's a competition that can only be determined in certain moments. I'm expecting a good result (on Tuesday)."