Pep Guardiola Says Manchester City Must 'Protect the Habit' of Reaching Finals

Pep Guardiola has called on his Manchester City side to stay in the "habit" of reaching finals after they beat Burton Albion 1-0 in the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final on Wednesday.

The Sky Blues demolished the League One side 9-0 in the opening leg, meaning they are through to the Carabao Cup final for the second year running.

They will meet either Tottenham Hotspur or Chelsea at Wembley on February 24 as they look to defend the trophy they won last year when they beat Arsenal in the final:

Guardiola pointed to his side's consistency after the narrow win at the Pirelli Stadium, in which Sergio Aguero scored the only goal, per Jonathan Smith of ESPN FC:

"We enjoy the moment because we are in a final. We know in Wembley, as we lived last season, it's quite special. It's nice to play a final in Wembley. [We must] protect the habit—the habit of getting into the final. Of course going to try to win it but it will not be easy because Tottenham and Chelsea are incredible teams like Arsenal was last season but we are going to try.

"Everybody wants to play, that is a good signal. Why should we not try to do it well and arrive at the final? We've made back-to-back finals in this competition. People say: 'No, the club, this team, they lack consistency.' That's completely the opposite. I think we showed that when we arrive in the final, and in this competition next season if we are in final again it's because every game is important."

The Carabao Cup was Guardiola's first trophy at City after a barren first season with the club.

No matter which side advances from Thursday's semi-final—Spurs have a 1-0 lead from the first leg—City will go into the final as favourites.

If they successfully defend the trophy, it would be Guardiola's third major prize as City manager following their record-breaking Premier League win last term.

Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

The only silverware the Spaniard has left to win with the Sky Blues is the FA Cup and, most importantly, the UEFA Champions League.

Guardiola won European football's premier club competition twice as manager of Barcelona, but he failed to take Bayern Munich to a final during his three seasons in Germany.

At City, he has overseen last-16 and quarter-final exits from the Champions League, a record he will be eager to improve upon this season.

City have been drawn against Schalke in the last 16 and are heavy favourites to advance to the quarter-finals.

But then it will get tough for the Sky Blues, and they will need to be at their best until the end of the season if they are to go all the way in Europe.