If De Bruyne were to give a grade to Pep Guardiola, he wouldn't hesitate: he would give the Manchester City manager an 'A'. He doesn't deserve less.
Against Real Madrid, the Spanish manager surprised everyone... the players included. "I think that, of the 4 years that we've been here with Pep, it is the day that he has surprised us most", De Bruyne said in some statements collected by 'AS' after the match.
"There were some surprises within the team. Even the players themselves didn't know what to do before the game!" De Bruyne confessed, who still couldn't believe it.
Thanks to Guardiola's approach, City got the win at the Bernabéu (1-2). "It's a very good result for the first leg. The first 15 minutes we suffered a little bit, but you have to go through the storm. It was a pretty even first half and we started the second half pretty well. Our response was brilliant", he analysed.
However, he admitted that they made some mistakes. "Some changes were good, although we had some bad moments. In a game of quality like this, you have to go through those kinds of difficulties. But I think we really fought well together".
De Bruyne had a great game. As a memento, the player scored his 50th Manchester City goal. A day he will never forget.
Now, De Bruyne and all of Manchester City are thinking about the 2nd leg. We will have to see if, like on this occasion, Guardiola surprises even his own team with the formation for the Champions League last 16 2nd leg.