Erik ten Hag refused to entertain a question about potentially overseeing Manchester United’s worst Premier League season and has not given up on Champions League qualification.
Seventh-placed United suffered another setback in an underwhelming campaign after requiring a Bruno Fernandes brace to scrape a scarcely-deserved 2-2 draw at Bournemouth.
United have never finished below their current position since the league’s inception in 1992.
“I don’t comment on that question,” replied Ten Hag as he walked out of his post-match press conference when asked about the prospect of ending below seventh place.
“That is not important at the moment.”
Ten Hag’s men were tormented by impressive Bournemouth for much of an uninspiring outing at Vitality Stadium and twice trailed in the first half following goals from Cherries pair Dominic Solanke and Justin Kluivert.
United, who have a lengthy injury list, particularly in defence, sit 10 points adrift of the top four with only six games remaining on the back of just one win from seven matches.
Asked if the Champions League places were now beyond his team, Ten Hag replied: “No. I didn’t say that.
“We give what we can but I am also realistic, so when the full squad was there, I still would have said I believe.
“But we will keep fighting with the players who are available and you can see there is high potential.
“But also young players they make mistakes. They have proved they can compete with the best teams on the highest level but now they have to do it consistently. There is always the next step for young players.”
Solanke and Kluivert each capitalised on passive United defending to fire beyond Andre Onana, while Bournemouth also missed a host of first-half chances and struck the crossbar through Milos Kerkez.
Fernandes briefly levelled between those strikes and, having hit the bar from distance, equalised for a second time with a 65th-minute penalty after Adam Smith was punished for handling Kobbie Mainoo’s harmless deflected effort.
United looked set to face a stoppage-time penalty before breathing a sigh of relief when VAR intervened to rule Willy Kambwala’s challenge on Ryan Christie was outside the 18-yard box.
Ten Hag, who revealed centre-back Harry Maguire played with an injury issue in the first half, dismissed the suggestion his players are lacking motivation.
“I have been in football a very long time and they are very motivated,” said the Dutchman.
“We are motivated but the organisation wasn’t right and we lost balls where we shouldn’t and the pressure of the opponent.
“But our players are better than this.
“The good thing is we returned twice from losing positions. The spirit is good, the resilience is good.”
Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola questioned the consistency of top-flight officiating after falling agonisingly short of securing his club’s first league double over the 20-time English champions.
The Spaniard felt Kambwala’s challenge on Christie continued into United’s 18-yard box and deemed Smith’s handball “very harsh”.
“It’s not only about the important decisions,” said the Premier League’s manager of the month for March.
“It’s about Kobbie Mainoo diving in the first half, nothing happens; Ryan Christie, with much more contact, dives in the second half, yellow card. It’s about consistency.
“We are safe, yes, but you have to value our points, the same way you value United’s points – in the same exact way.
“The last decision, for the VAR to intervene for something that should be clear and obvious, the first touch between the players can be one centimetre outside, it has to be clear, but it’s obvious he continues making the offence inside and doesn’t allow Ryan to finish the play.”
Speaking of Smith’s handball, Iraola said: “It’s very harsh. It’s coming from his own team-mate, a rebound.
“You are two metres away, you don’t have time to do anything. They are going in the right way with the handballs because at one moment they were calling everything but today they changed their way of refereeing.
“At the end, one point against United is always important. But if anyone deserved to win today, it was clearly Bournemouth.”
Defending champion Jon Rahm admitted he had a “sour feeling” at remaining a frustrated also-ran on day three of the 88th Masters at Augusta National.
Rahm had insisted his competitive edge had not been dulled by his move to LIV Golf ahead of his attempt to become just the fourth player to win back-to-back Masters titles.
The Spaniard’s shock move to the Saudi-backed breakaway came after he had previously pledged his loyalty to the PGA Tour and criticised LIV’s 54-hole format, with no cut and a shotgun start as “not a golf tournament”.
The two-time major winner has failed to win any of the five LIV events he has played to date, but travelled to Augusta on the back of finishing fourth in Miami on Sunday and winning the team event at Doral.
However, the Ryder Cup star was never a factor in the year’s first major and added a third round of 72 on Saturday to remain five over par after previous scores of 73 and 76.
“Yesterday was terrible,” Rahm conceded. “Today I kept in in play off the tee, which is going to do a lot. Didn’t really make any putts, did I? Gave myself plenty of chances, just didn’t make them.
“Luckily made the one on 17 to have the only birdie of the day – I had a few really good chances on three, four, five and eight, just none of them wanted to go in.
“Those first two days it’s just too hard of conditions to not have your swing. Being a little lost and not being under control of what was going on makes it so much harder.
“Had to play very defensively and try to pick my spots and just couldn’t put myself in a good position coming into today. I think if you came out today and somehow shot 67 or lower, maybe you could give yourself a little bit of hope.
“But it’s a hard golf course out there. Anything under par is a good round. Anything in the 60s is a fantastic round today.”
As defending champion Rahm will be required to hand over a green jacket to the winner on Sunday and added: “Yeah, I mean, worst case I’ll be a part of the ceremony. I’ll be there.
“I’m guessing it will be a little different (to last year). Bit of a sour feeling knowing you’re not in contention.”
Rahm’s successor as Masters champion will earn USD 3.6million (£2.89m) on Sunday, up by USD 360,000 (£289,000) from last year, after tournament officials announced the overall prize fund had been increased from USD 18m (£14.4m) to USD 20m (£16m).
Rory McIlroy will not be presented with a green jacket by his Ryder Cup team-mate after failing to play his way back into contention on Saturday, the world number two returning a 71 to improve to three over par.
McIlroy at least fared better than Tiger Woods, who had refused to give up hope of an unlikely sixth Masters title after making a record 24th consecutive halfway cut to lie seven shots off the lead.
After following a bogey on the fourth with a superb birdie on the difficult fifth, Woods three-putted the next and ran up double bogeys on the seventh and eighth to slide further down the leaderboard.
It is the first time in his career that Woods has taken seven on the par-five eighth.
Juventus’ poor run in Serie A extended to just two wins in 11 games as they were held to a disappointing 0-0 draw away at city rivals Torino.
Massimiliano Allegri’s side, who were top of the league when they beat Lecce on January 21 but who now trail leaders Inter Milan by 19 points having played a game more, failed to break down their mid-table opponents as their astonishing collapse in form dragged on into another week.
It was the third game in four in the league in which they have failed to score and leaves them vulnerable to being caught in the race to qualify for the Champions League, with fifth-place Roma able to cut the gap on them to five points should they win their game in hand.
Dusan Vlahovic had Juve’s clearest chances of the first half, first when he knocked Federico Chiesa’s cross against a post, then again when he was foiled by Vanja Milinkovic-Savic in the Torino goal.
The goalkeeper was called on again to deny the visitors, diving at full stretch to keep out a firm low effort from Kenan Yildiz.
Duvan Zapata thought he had given Torino the lead when he crashed the ball home shortly after half-time, only for his effort to be ruled out for a foul committed by Raoul Bellanova against Juve’s Filip Kostic.
Antonio Sanabria rose highest to meet Bellanova’s cross midway through the second half, drawing a good save from Wojciech Szczesny as Torino threatened.
The hosts might have made it a truly disastrous night for Allegri when Karol Linetty’s ball in was turned over the crossbar by Valentino Lazaro, who seemed to make contact with the ball with his neck with the goal gaping.
It concluded a frustrating encounter for Juve, and came in stark contrast to the comfortable 2-0 win they enjoyed in the derby back in October, when the team were in the early stages of what looked a credible title challenge.
It leaves Allegri’s side in a fight to ensure they do not miss out on the Champions League for a second consecutive season.
They still have the possible consolation of the Coppa Italia to aim for, and play the second leg of their semi-final away to Lazio on April 23 looking to defend a 2-0 aggregate lead.
The New York Knicks are under no illusions as to the importance of securing home-court advantage for the Eastern Conference playoffs, with Friday's win over the Brooklyn Nets keeping them in the hunt for the second seed.
The Knicks drew level with the Milwaukee Bucks at 49-32 with their 111-107 win at Madison Square Garden, boosting their chances of playing at the iconic venue through the postseason.
Jalen Brunson put up 30 points and added 11 assists as the Knicks made it four straight victories, with Josh Hart adding 16 and Mitchell Robinson tacking on 15.
The result saw New York secure a top-four seed, with the Bucks' subsequent 125-107 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder keeping their chances of finishing second in the East alive.
With the Bucks possessing the head-to-head tiebreaker, the Knicks must beat the Chicago Bulls in their season finale on Sunday and hope Milwaukee lose on the road against the Orlando Magic. If both teams lose, the Cleveland Cavaliers could yet usurp them.
Asked about the importance of playing at home, Hart said: "I heard the lights are really bright at MSG during that time, so it's really big for us."
Coach Tom Thibodeau, though, said the team cannot control anything other than their own results, saying: "We want to go through the finish line so that's the way we're looking at it. We want to improve and play our best."
With Giannis Antetokounmpo sidelined by a left calf injury and Damian Lillard missing out due to pain in his left adductor, the short-handed Bucks let the Knicks into the race with their loss at Paycom Center.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 23 points and Chet Holmgren added 22 as the Thunder eased to victory, establishing a 17-point halftime lead which they never looked likely to surrender.
Asked about Milwaukee's failure to wrap up second place, Bucks coach Doc Rivers said: "I don't have much of a reaction. We've got to run to the finish line.
"The good news is, no matter what, we'll be at home for game one. That we do know."
That result was also an important one in the race to top the Western Conference, with the Thunder now locked in a three-way tie with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets.
It's in Oklahoma City's hands going into their season finale against the Dallas Mavericks, with Mark Daigneault's team edging the three-way tiebreaker.
"I think the big exponential jumps come from small incremental steps," Daigneault said after Friday's game. "I talk all the time about stacking and we really are trying to live that out.
"We just try to have a good day in the day that's in front of us, have a good possession in the possession that's in front of us, a good game in the game that's in front of us and just be very present in the process of improving and competing."
Bayern Munich forward Kingsley Coman is set for a spell on the sidelines with an adductor muscle injury, which will rule him out of the Champions League quarter-final second leg against Arsenal.
Coman suffered the setback during Bayern’s 2-0 win over Koln, having been forced off five minutes into the second half.
The 27-year-old France forward is now set to face an unspecified period of recovery.
A statement from the Bundesliga club on Saturday evening read: “Kingsley Coman will be out of action for FC Bayern for several weeks after the forward suffered an injury in his right adductor muscle in the Bundesliga home game against Koln on Saturday.
“This was confirmed following an examination by FC Bayern’s medical department.
“Coman injured himself after a movement in the Koln penalty area with no intervention from an opponent and had to be substituted in the 50th minute.”
Bayern drew 2-2 with Arsenal in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final in London on Tuesday night, with the return match set for the Allianz Arena on April 17.
Real Madrid kept themselves in control at the top of LaLiga with a 1-0 win at Mallorca.
In a game of limited clear chances, a deflected effort from Aurelien Tchouameni early in the second half proved the difference for Los Blancos, who built towards a defining period of the campaign next week in the Champions League and hosting Barcelona in El Clasico.
With an eye on next week’s European quarter-final second leg against Manchester City, Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti opted for five changes, but England midfielder Jude Bellingham retained his place in the side.
The visitors made a bright start, with Luka Modric sending an early free-kick straight into the wall.
Mallorca, recently beaten in the Copa del Rey final by Athletic Bilbao, were proving difficult to break down.
In the 34th minute, Bellingham sent in a curling effort from the edge of the penalty area but it looped over the goalkeeper and cannoned off the crossbar.
Real finally made their pressure count three minutes after the restart.
Tchouameni picked the ball up around 25 yards out before drilling in a rising drive which took a deflection off a Mallorca defender and spun off up into the top right corner.
Brahim Diaz had a chance to quickly double the lead after running into the Mallorca penalty area but his effort was straight at goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic.
As the hour mark passed, Mallorca substitute Abdon Prats saw his shot blocked before Real missed the chance to add a second.
Modric cut a pass back to Diaz just outside the six-yard box but the winger’s touch was too strong, which allowed Rajkovic to kick the loose ball clear.
Ancelotti then made a couple of changes, with Diaz and Bellingham given a rest as Vinicius Junior and Eduardo Camavinga were sent on.
Real pressed for another goal to kill off the match, with Camavinga playing in Federico Valverde, only for his effort to be hacked off the line by Mallorca defender Matija Nastasic.
Sergi Darder almost scored a fine equaliser when his 25-yard effort, flying towards the top left corner, was palmed away by Real keeper Andriy Lunin at full stretch.
With 10 minutes left, Joselu’s header from a free-kick was saved by Rajkovic.
Mallorca almost snatched a dramatic equaliser with what proved to be the last kick of the game deep into stoppage-time.
Lunin jumped with Vedat Muriqi as he tried to catch a high cross into the Real box but dropped the ball – which the Kosovo striker then stabbed wide of an open goal.
Defending champion Jon Rahm remained a frustrated also-ran on day three of the 88th Masters at Augusta National.
Rahm had insisted his competitive edge had not been dulled by his move to LIV Golf ahead of his attempt to become just the fourth player to win back-to-back Masters titles.
The Spaniard’s shock move to the Saudi-backed breakaway came after he had previously pledged his loyalty to the PGA Tour and criticised LIV’s 54-hole format, with no cut and a shotgun start as “not a golf tournament”.
The two-time major winner has failed to win any of the five LIV events he has played to date, but travelled to Augusta on the back of finishing fourth in Miami on Sunday and winning the team event at Doral.
However, the Ryder Cup star was never a factor in the year’s first major and added a third round of 72 on Saturday to remain five over par after previous scores of 73 and 76.
That 76 had been compiled in fiendishly difficult conditions on Friday, with winds gusting up to 40mph sending scores soaring and leaving Rahm querying whether play should have been suspended.
“A couple of times I was questioning myself why we were out there, especially when I got to 18 and saw the whole front of the green just full of sand,” Rahm said after his round.
“I can imagine they were very close to calling it a few times, especially when we were on 11 green and we were getting those massive gusts every couple of minutes or so. It was extremely difficult.
“Not only that, how long did it take us to play? Over six hours to play just because they had to blow the greens in between groups.”
Rahm’s successor as Masters champion will earn USD 3.6million (£2.89m) on Sunday, up by USD 360,000 (£289,000) from last year, after tournament officials announced the overall prize fund had been increased from USD 18m (£14.4m) to USD 20m (£16m).
Rory McIlroy will not be presented with a green jacket by his Ryder Cup team-mate after failing to play his way back into contention on Saturday, the world number two quickly giving himself more work to do with a bogey on the first.
A birdie on the par-five second repaired the damage before McIlroy three-putted the sixth and missed from five feet for birdie on the next, although he did convert from the same distance on the par-five eighth.
Tiger Woods had also refused to give up hope of an unlikely sixth Masters title after making a record 24th consecutive halfway cut to lie seven shots off the lead.
However, after a superb birdie on the difficult fifth, Woods three-putted the next and ran up a double bogey on the seventh to slide further down the leaderboard.
Bournemouth had an added-time penalty award overturned by VAR as disjointed Manchester United escaped Vitality Stadium with a scarcely-deserved 2-2 draw thanks to Bruno Fernandes’ brace.
Referee Tony Harrington pointed to the spot five minutes beyond the 90 when Ryan Christie went down under a challenge from Willy Kambwala before changing his decision to a free-kick on review.
Erik ten Hag’s men were tormented for much of an uninspiring performance in Dorset and twice trailed in the first half following goals from Cherries pair Dominic Solanke and Justin Kluivert.
Fernandes volleyed home his first equaliser against the run of play before denying the impressive hosts a maiden league double over the 20-time English champions by converting a 65th-minute penalty after Adam Smith inexplicably handled.
United’s Portuguese captain also rattled the crossbar with a stunning strike from distance at 2-1 down in stoppage time at the end of an exhilarating opening period.
Yet outstanding Bournemouth, who hit the woodwork through Milos Kerkez and wasted numerous other chances, should have have been out of sight by then.
United move on to a Wembley FA Cup semi-final against Coventry sitting seventh in the table and with European qualification for next term still far from assured following another disappointing display of an unconvincing season, which extended their winless run to four top-flight games.
Coventry manager Mark Robins wrote off his side’s Sky Bet Championship play-off hopes after their 3-0 defeat at relegation-threatened Birmingham.
An own goal by Bobby Thomas in the 12th minute and strikes from Ivan Sunjic and Jay Stansfield condemned the visitors to a third loss in four games.
Coupled with Norwich’s 1-0 win at Preston, it left the Sky Blues in eighth place, eight points adrift of the top six with four games left.
They have an FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United next weekend and next play in the Championship on April 24 when they host Hull.
“We had to pick points up in three out of the four games we have lost and you can’t do that if you are realistically challenging, so it’s massively disappointing,” said Robins.
“We have given ourselves a mountain to climb. We could be 12 points adrift (of the top six) by the time we next play (in the league) and Norwich are too good.
“We didn’t start at all. Initially we had a couple of shots dragged wide, but they were first to the ball in every challenge. Every first contact they seemed to win.
“It looked like a lethargic performance and people made poor choices and it cost us three goals.
“They took the lead from an own goal where we didn’t get close enough to the attacker (Keshi Anderson), then for the second one, (goalkeeper) Brad Collins was unsighted.
“For the third goal we got dragged all over the place because we weren’t talking and that smacks of fatigue.”
The victory was Birmingham’s biggest win since October – and only their second in 11 games – and it moved them out of the relegation zone after Bristol City denied Huddersfield victory at the death.
Blues led when Anderson’s cross hit Thomas and deflected in at the near post.
Sunjic doubled the hosts’ lead with a rasping low drive that caught Collins flat-footed after a corner and Stansfield made it 3-0 when he clipped the ball past Collins following a superb diagonal run behind the defence which was spotted by Tyler Roberts on the left.
The closest Coventry came to scoring came in the 20th minute when Haji Wright’s lob hit the bar after keeper John Ruddy headed away a clearance.
Birmingham interim manager Gary Rowett challenged his side to repeat the performance for the next three games to avoid relegation.
“That was a much better performance and it had a lot more of what we expect and, lo and behold, you get your rewards,” he said.
“You might not find yourself solid defensively, but you find yourself scoring and creating chances.
“Some of the senior lads held the others to account in midweek (after a 1-0 home defeat to Cardiff) and everyone has taken that on board, which is what should happen. I thought we showed it.
“Now we’ve got to replicate that in the last three games.”
Rowett also praised the positive impact of the 26,811 crowd.
“It’s been no coincidence we’ve had five full houses this season and won all five games,” he added.
“If that doesn’t show the power of our fan base, nothing will. They were brilliant – the atmosphere was incredible.
“It was nice to reward that loyalty with a performance that had a similar edge.”
Boss Matt Taylor was delighted to see Bristol Rovers click into gear as they brushed Cheltenham aside with a comfortable 3-1 win to end their seven-game wait for a goal.
Scott Sinclair opened the scoring in the first half and Brandon Aguilera and Elkan Baggott added two more after the break before Liam Sercombe’s stoppage-time consolation for the relegation-threatened hosts.
Rovers skipper Antony Evans also saw a first-half penalty saved, with Rovers in total control.
“Everyone will talk about the goals, but I thought we looked solid as a team,” Taylor said.
“We looked like a proper team and we should’ve been more than one ahead at half-time and that’s no disrespect to Cheltenham.
“We know we look good as a team on paper, but we’ve never had everyone available, all of the time.
“We controlled things and started the game well, but needed something to show for it and Scotty was cool and calm for the opener. His legs were a constant threat to their back line.”
Former Chelsea and Man City star Sinclair opened the scoring in the 12th minute, finishing neatly past Luke Southwood and inside the bottom left corner after being played in by Luke Thomas.
Evans was brought down in the box by Southwood 10 minutes before half-time, but the goalkeeper redeemed himself by diving to his left to keep out the spot-kick.
Cheltenham, managed by ex-Rovers boss Darrell Clarke, made two changes at half-time, but they were not able to find a way back into the game and it was 2-0 in the 56th minute.
Thomas found substitute Aguilera and he rolled a shot into the bottom right corner.
Former Cheltenham loanee Baggott headed the third from Harvey Vale’s corner in the 76th minute.
Sercombe was set up by fellow ex-Rovers player Matty Taylor in the 94th minute, but it was too little, too late for Cheltenham.
Clarke admitted his team are majorly struggling for confidence, with four games left to save their season, starting at one of the teams they can catch – Burton – on Tuesday night.
“I am searching for answers with the group and we have some walking wounded and players putting their bodies on the line,” he said.
“I get the frustration and disappointment from my supporters, who have been great. We just have to keep going.
“We have to make sure we don’t feel sorry for ourselves because unbelievably it’s still in our hands, with four games to go.
“We have to keep going and make sure we are ready to go Tuesday.
“While we still have a chance, we’ll go there and try to win the game.”
Erol Bulut questioned Cardiff’s mentality after an “unacceptable” second-half performance in their 3-1 defeat against Millwall at The Den.
Jake Cooper’s volley put the Lions in front at the break after Michael Obafemi and Yakou Meite traded goals during an entertaining first half.
However, Neil Harris’ side controlled the second half, limiting the Bluebirds to scraps before Duncan Watmore made sure of things in stoppage time with a cool finish past Ethan Horvath.
The result lifts Millwall into 16th, six points clear of the relegation zone, while Cardiff are now 11th with three games remaining.
And Bulut insists his side need to show a winning mentality in their remaining games.
“Millwall at home are a good team, they are working and fighting and I was satisfied with the first half, but with the second half, I have no words for the second half,” he said.
“Nobody can tell me ‘two days before we had a game and we were tired’, Millwall also played a few days ago.
“The main thing is the mentality, how you go in the game, if you want to change this game, if you want to win this game, what you are expecting from yourself individually.
“I can speak only to my players, but the mentality on the field has to change, especially in the second half.
“Consistency is the biggest problem that we have this season. If it was a little bit different then we would be speaking now about different things.
“It was like day and night. In the first half it was clear that the better team was Cardiff but we conceded two goals and the second half was not acceptable.
“If you have these small mistakes in your game then it is difficult to come back.”
The win is a huge boost for relegation-threatened Millwall and Harris believes his side are proving a lot of people wrong.
“Every man and his dog wanted to tell me that these lads can’t play at The Den,” Harris said.
“They do know how to play at The Den and it was a big thing for me to try and galvanise the football club and bring the terrace and the pitch together.
“It’s down to the players when they go on the pitch, so they take the credit and the praise for it.
“Tuesday night against Leicester was a monumental performance from the players and a special evening, but in some ways I’m more pleased with today because to back it up with such a comprehensive performance is testament to the group’s mentality.
“We looked a lot more confident today with the ball and I think if we had scored the third goal at the start of the second half we could have gone on to score four or five.
“It’s important for the football club to stay at this level.”
Leading owner JP McManus finished an incredible three-days at Aintree by watching I Am Maximus provide him with a thrilling third triumph in the Randox Grand National.
The famous green and gold silks of McManus were a frequent sight in the winner’s enclosure over the three-day meeting in Liverpool, with the Emmet Mullins-trained Its On The Line scoring over the Grand National fences in the Foxhunters on Thursday before a Grade One treble on Friday afternoon.
Inothewayurthinkin, Mystical Power and Jonbon were all successful on day two, but the best was still to come.
Although McManus had spoken of his liking for the chance of Limerick Lace – bred by his wife, Noreen – in the lead-up to the world’s most famous steeplechase, it was his first colours that were carried to victory by the Willie Mullins-trained favourite, I Am Maximus, who ran out the most impressive of winners in the hands of Paul Townend.
Flanked by his grandchildren, McManus was lifting the trophy for a third time as I Am Maximus joined the likes of Rhyme ‘n’ Reason, Bobbyjo and Numbersixvalverde to follow up victory in the Irish Grand National on Merseyside.
In the aftermath he was keen to stress his love for both the great race and Aintree, and told ITV: “I love everything about the race.
“I love Liverpool, the excitement of coming here, the build-up to the National, it’s just a very, very special place. When you win it’s a wonderful spectacle.
“The Grand National, you are always looking forward to it and what you might have for the next one because it is such a special race.
“Willie planned the campaign with this horse a long time back and thankfully it worked out.”
McManus has already played a key part in National history having provided Sir Anthony McCoy with a long-awaited Aintree success when Don’t Push It struck in 2010, while that was topped in 2021 when Rachael Blackmore rode herself into the record books aboard Minella Times in the Irishman’s colours.
Pep Guardiola immediately turned his attention to the challenge of Real Madrid after his Manchester City side thrashed Luton 5-1 on Saturday.
City enjoyed the perfect preparation for Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final second leg against the Spanish giants as they cruised past the Hatters in a one-sided encounter.
An early own goal from Daiki Hashioka set them on their way before second-half strikes from Mateo Kovacic, Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Josko Gvardiol wrapped up a comfortable win.
With the three points taking City back to the Premier League summit, putting pressure on rivals Arsenal and Liverpool ahead of Sunday’s fixtures, Guardiola could switch his focus to Real.
“The team is alive,” said the City boss, whose side played out a pulsating 3-3 draw with Real last Tuesday.
“It’s difficult against Real Madrid but, at the same time, let’s try and go to do it with our people.
“Whatever happens, we will give everything. There is not one minute when we won’t know what to do.
“We have all our desire to do it. I want the Etihad full, no seat empty.”
City are chasing an unprecedented second successive treble.
Guardiola said: “We have to admit it, what a privilege, still fighting for the Premier League, playing against Real Madrid with a chance to qualify for the semi-final, and the FA Cup next Saturday, a semi-final again.”
Although City won comfortably, Guardiola felt Luton had made things difficult.
He said: “It was really hard until the second goal.
“We played really good and had a lot of chances in the first half but we missed something in the finishing.
“How many times have I seen in world football that a team is better and doesn’t win the game? Many times. We know how difficult Luton are.”
Hatters boss Rob Edwards conceded he had not expected his relegation battlers to get anything from the game.
He said: “It was always going to be difficult. Without sounding very defeatist, I almost made peace with it.
“They were the dominant team, they were amazing, but we stayed in the game as long as we could. It’s tough but today was never going to derail us.”
Edwards bemoaned his side’s luck in conceding so early, with the own goal coming as a Haaland shot cannoned into the net off Hashioka’s head.
He said: “We wanted to try to be aggressive but then Haaland knocks out Hashy with the first goal – one of the few defenders we have left knocked out on the floor and we’re 1-0 down after a minute.
“What a start that is, that’s tough.”
Hashioka required treatment before continuing but Edwards later clarified he had not actually been knocked unconscious.
He said: “No, he was just lying flat. I was just saying that in jest. I was just worried that he was.
“He just got up and I thought, ‘thank goodness for that’. Otherwise we would have been putting a centre forward at centre-back.”
Neil Critchley stressed his Blackpool side need to be perfect to sneak into the play-off spots after a 1-0 victory at relegated Carlisle.
Karamoko Dembele scored the only goal of the game after just 22 seconds to keep Blackpool in the hunt for an unlikely play-off spot.
The Seasiders are three points off the top-six pace, having played a game more than incumbents Oxford.
And boss Critchley said: “I thought we were good first half. We got off to a great start, it was a fantastic goal. It was a brilliant break and well taken.
“We were saying we had to score again and we had the opportunities to score again.
“We had a few moments in the second half. It was the same pattern as the last few games and the longer it’s 1-0 you are susceptible to conceding.
“It was a tough game due to the conditions. At this stage we’ll take a 1-0 win.
“We thought we could hurt them in transition moments and we did that. Shayne (Lavery) had a lovely touch and Kade’s broke forward into space. It was a great start and settled us down.
“Sometimes scoring so early can give you a false sense of security in the game.
“We were in control, but our decision making and quality let us down. We have to improve that side of our game.”
Carlisle are already relegated, but fought hard to try and salvage a point.
And boss Paul Simpson said: “It was a horrific start to the game, conceding after 22 seconds, a goal like that.
“It was a tough, tough first half. The conditions were really tricky.
“Credit to the players, they stuck at it and hung in there in the first half when we were struggling against the wind.
“We just tried to contain it with the way they were playing. We had a real good go second half.
“There was some fantastic defending on the line from their lad to deny Luke Armstrong on the line.
“Apart from that we haven’t created a lot. It’s a frustrating game. Another game where we have conceded and lost by a single goal.
“I’m really disappointed. We had a lot that went against us with injuries and knocks in the game.
“There’s lot of disappointment, but we have to give credit to the players at how they stuck at it despite the quality not being there.”
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
