Pep Guardiola Talks Manchester City vs. Monaco After 5-3 Champions League Win

Manager Pep Guardiola insisted Manchester City will be knocked out of the UEFA Champions League if they don't score a goal in the return leg of their last-16 clash against Monaco despite earning a thrilling 5-3 win over the Ligue 1 side in the first leg on Tuesday. 

The Sky Blues looked to be in serious trouble at the Etihad Stadium when they relinquished a 1-0 lead to trail 2-1 and 3-2, but goals from Sergio Aguero, John Stones and Leroy Sane means they now have a two-goal cushion in the tie.

Guardiola, though, warned against complacency and Monaco's free-scoring excellence by saying City are far from through to the quarter-finals after Tuesday's Champions League classic, per James Robson in the Manchester Evening News: "They will attack more and more, and we have to defend better. We are not going to defend that result. We have to score goals. If we don’t score a goal in Monaco we will be eliminated."

Raheem Sterling put City ahead against Leonardo Jardim's side before goals from Radamel Falcao and Kylian Mbappe put Monaco in the driving seat.

An Aguero equaliser and a second from Falcao then set up a brilliant final 20 minutes, but for all the class there was in front of goal in Manchester, Guardiola was correct to pick out some poor defending, per BT Sport Football:

Stones was culpable for Falcao's second goal of the night and City's marking was poor for Monaco's first two, while Jardim would have been furious with his side's defence at two corners which saw City take the lead.

A similar performance from either side will likely lead to another goal-fest in the second leg at the Stade Louis II, not least because of Monaco's remarkable scoring record this season.

Monaco Home Form (Last Eight Results)	City Away Form (Last Eight Results)
Won 5-0 vs. Metz	Drew 0-0 vs. Huddersfield Town
Won 3-0 vs. Nice	Won 2-0 vs. Bournemouth
Won 1-0 vs. Nancy	Won 4-0 vs. West Ham United
Won 4-0 vs. Lorient	Won 3-0 vs. Crystal Palace
Won 2-1 vs. Ajaccio	Lost 4-0 vs. Everton
Won 2-1 vs. Caen	Won 5-0 vs. West Ham United
Lost 3-1 vs. Lyon	Lost 1-0 vs. Liverpool
Won 7-0 vs. Rennes	Won 3-0 vs. Hull City

The Ligue 1 leaders have netted a staggering 76 goals in 26 matches in the French top flight in 2016-17. They are Europe's leading scorers in all competitions, per BBC 5 live Sport:

In their last 14 home games in all competitions they have won 13 and lost one, netting 51 goals and conceding eight.

The stats back up Guardiola's claim that the tie is far from over. If Monaco get an early goal in the return leg they will be confident of overturning Tuesday's result and advancing, and their three away goals could prove vital.