Tijjani Reijnders has stressed that Manchester City will not lose confidence after their unexpected defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League.
City manager Pep Guardiola made 10 changes to his lineup, but the team fell 2-0 at home to Bundesliga side Leverkusen on Tuesday.
The loss ended City’s unbeaten run in the league phase of Europe’s premier club competition ahead of a clash with Spanish giants Real Madrid and came just days after a defeat to Newcastle in the Premier League.
Reijnders emphasized that the team must remain mentally strong and focus on returning to winning ways in their next match at home to Leeds. He underlined that the squad knows its capabilities and has the quality to bounce back.
He added that there is no need to panic despite back-to-back losses, as the season still offers plenty of opportunities, and the team must approach each game individually.
Only midfielder Nico Gonzalez retained his starting spot from the loss to Newcastle, as Guardiola rested key players including Erling Haaland, Phil Foden, and Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Leverkusen took the lead through Alejandro Grimaldo and Patrik Schick, and even Haaland’s introduction with 25 minutes left, after scoring 32 goals this season for club and country, could not change the outcome.
Reijnders insisted that the defeat would not affect City’s preparation for their upcoming trip to face 15-time European champions Real Madrid at the Bernabeu on December 10.
He noted that while the team knows what to expect from Madrid, the focus remains on being ready for their next league fixture first.