We will face AFC Champions League winners Urawa Red Diamonds in the semi-finals of the competition on Tuesday 19 December at 18:00 (UK) following their 1-0 victory over Mexican side Club Leon on Friday afternoon.
Qualifying for the tournament by virtue of winning the UEFA Champions League, we would face either Brazilian outfit Fluminense or Al Ahly in the final should we get the better of the Japanese side.
But while the boss insists the squad are focused on adding another trophy to our cabinet, he wants his players to take the pressure out of the occasion and enjoy the overall spectacle.
He said: “I want the players [to not] be desperate to win it. Just to come to play two games.
“Win the first one to deserve to play the final and if we don’t win it, we are going to win hopefully the Champions League in the future and will be back.
“It’s just a simple two football games, especially the first one because it allows you to play the final otherwise you play the third-fourth position game and yes, do what you have to do.
“We learned this pattern in the Champions League in the past.
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“In life you cannot play ‘oh never again it’s going to happen’, why not? It can happen in the future. Just play the games as best as you can, that’s all.
“But, of course, the motivation or feeling that we never won that, it’s important.
“And always, wins help to win. And a win against Crystal Palace will help us, by far, to approach the game better.”
As the boss alludes to, City face Crystal Palace in the Premier League before we set off for Saudi Arabia.
Guardiola’s men are looking to make it three wins in the space of six days, but know we’ll need to be at our best against the Eagles.
After three draws and a defeat against Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Aston Villa, City got back to winning ways in the league with a 2-1 victory at Luton Town in our most recent domestic encounter.
The boss is satisfied with the current levels his players are reaching, and is confident that our title race experience will help us to string a strong run of results together.
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He added: “In the last 12 games, we lost one. It’s not bad. It’s quite decent. We are used to a lot of games.
“It’s different when you have a bad season, a bad season and don’t win. Sometimes they say it’s better not to win one season but the next one you will be better.
“Sometimes when you win, win, win, you know exactly what you have to do. You have the smell. You have the feeling.
“We know exactly what we have to do. How you have to behave. It also helps.
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“If you win titles there can be the tendency to say ‘okay’ and believe you are something you are not, you go down.
“And the other point, I have the feeling that winning helps. Okay I know exactly what I have to do. How difficult it was.
“They know how difficult it was to win all the titles and they know exactly the standards we demand from ourselves to still be there because the teams in this country are getting better.”
