Manchester City's Phil Foden has revealed some harsh words from manager Pep Guardiola were behind a much-improved second-half performance against Club Brugge in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Foden gave City the lead early on, before a comical own goal from John Stones saw the visitors restore parity in the contest.
City were well below their best for the remainder of the half and it was only after the interval when they clicked into gear, with goals from Riyad Mahrez, Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus easing them to a 4-1 win.
While the scoreline was emphatic in the end, the team will need to improve to earn a win on Saturday, when they visit Manchester United at Old Trafford in a crucial derby encounter.
Speaking to BT Sport after the game, Foden said the players shared some truths at the interval that inspired the second-half upturn.
"I thought we had a sloppy first half and let them get back into the game," said Foden. "But we got in at half time and talked about what was going on and I think in the second half we changed that and played much better.
"I don't know what it was [in the first half]. It looked a bit heavy. I was a bit 'why didn't we have energy?'. But in the second half, like I said, we went in and sorted it.
"The manager wasn't happy and that's the kind of [coach] he is. You have to take his advice. We changed a couple of things in the second half, we were much better in possession and hurt them a lot more in behind with the space."
The victory for City was enough for them to go back to the top of their Champions League group, as Paris Saint-Germain conceded a last-gasp goal away at RB Leipzig to draw 2-2.
That result means Guardiola 's side can secure top spot in the group if they can get past Lionel Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar & Co. when they visit the Etihad Stadium in the penultimate game of the group stage.
