Mauricio Pochettino hails Chelsea 'fantastic' performance, Pep Guardiola pleased with 'incredible' Man City second-half

Chelsea’s Mauricio Pochettino praised his side’s 1-1 draw at Manchester City but said his team “need to grow”, while Pep Guardiola hailed an “incredible” second-half performance.

Raheem Sterling’s first-half strike against his former club looked like it might be enough to earn all three points for the away side before Rodri’s late equaliser.

With his side now through to the Carabao Cup final there is still a chance that a difficult season could end with a trophy, and ensure Pochettino is kept on for another season by Todd Boehly’s consortium.

The point earned at the Etihad means Chelsea are still only 10th and well off earning European football through their league position at the end of the season.

However there were encouraging signs with a performance that almost saw them earn three points at the current champions, and the team are undefeated in their last three games following a 4-2 defeat to Wolves.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Pochettino declared it a “Very good performance. Very pleased. I think that is the spirit that we want to show. We are working for that. I think they are the best team in the world and to show this performance, I think we need to be proud. We were very brave.

"First half was really good. I think we were aggressive with the ball going forward and winning duels. In the second half I think they dominated and they forced us to defend deeper. I think we sustained the effort and had some chances to win the game. I am so happy. It is a good draw for us and when you face this type of team I think it is important to be brave and fight in every aspect.

"Manchester City have the quality and capacity to create chances and they have amazing players. It is fantastic for us and we need to grow."

Looking ahead to the Carabao Cup final, he added: "We need to feel that it is possible to beat Liverpool. I think we are going to play the second best team in the world. I think belief is the most important thing and now we need to recover and prepare for the final."

Speaking to the BBC, Guardiola was underwhelmed by his side’s first-half efforts but was pleased with the comeback.

He explained: "We played incredible in the second half. The first half was not our levels but to compete against them teams you have to play 90 minutes not just one half."

Discussing the next game for City, against Brentford on Tuesday, he said: "We play Tuesday and we are going to try and get the points. I don't have the message for the fans about that [no panic]. I will focus on my team and I am disappointed for the result. We did our best and [it finished] 1-1."

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