The 'athletes' who keep beating Guardiola Champions League - Manchester City An inability to stop his rivals

It isn't easy to find an explanation for Pep Guardiola's failings in Europe since he left Barcelona in 2012, after winning two Champions Leagues in four campaigns.

Since then he has been eliminated three times in the semis with Bayern Munich and once in the knockout stages with Manchester City.

This season, unless they can claw back the 3-0 loss at Anfield, he will say goodbye in the quarterfinals.

Four exits - it could be five - with a common pattern.

Bayern had more possession (71.98 percent in the first leg and 69.6 percent in the second) against Real Madrid in 2013/14, more than Barcelona (54.74 percent and 54.51 percent) in 2014/15, they overwhelmed Atleti (73.79 percent and 72.71 percent) in 2015/6 and dominated Monaco (67.36 percent and 59.24 percent) in 2016/17.

Clearly, they control the ball, but not the games, and against Liverpool, they still had 65.98 percent possession, but never looked likely to score.

Its a nightmare that has been repeated since Guardiola underestimated Madrid in the first leg of the 2013/14 semis.

"They are the best on the counter, but are basically athletes, who can't give three consecutive passes in their own half," said the coach who has spent 529 millions euros at City.

Afterwards, he lamented: "Real are the richest team in the world, they buy everything they want."

A 4-0 'made by BBC'

'BBC' punished him with an incredible performance in the 4-0 win at the Allianz Arena.

"If you run after them, there is no option," said Pep at the time.

"Madrid has an impressive counter, it's a compliment to say we are athletes," Sergio Ramos replied.

It was repeated when MCN took Bayern apart in 2015/16.

"The game was good, but the result is very hard to take," Guardiola apologised, after Lionel Messi's double and Neymar's third.

"If we are disorganised, we will be penalised."

The return match saw Luis Enrique's team lose the possession stats for the first time in 101 matches... but in a game which Guardiola's players still couldn't win.

Two counterattacks by Neymar sealed Barcelona's qualification to the final despite losing 3-2 in Munich.

"The ball, the faster it goes, the quicker it comes back," Guardiola insisted.

In 2015/16 it was the turn of Atletico.

"Everything they do, they do well. a good defensive structure ... and they are quick on the counterattack. "

The siege and the triumph of Bayern in Munich (2-1) was worth nothing.

A goal by Saul Niguez in the first leg (1-0) and another by Griezmann in the Allianz, after a great counter, returned Simeone's side to the final two years after their last appearance.

The usual story

"If there is a team that can score 1,000, a million goals, it's Monaco, their players; Mendy, Lemar ... they're so quick," Guardiola said after City's 5-3 win at the Etihad Stadium.

The 3-1 in the Principality saw another 'athlete' - Mbappe - take the acclaim.

He scored a goal in the first leg and another in the return - and left Pep out of the Champions League before the semis for the first time.

Guardiola wanted to protect himself with Gundogan instead of Sterling to favour the "long possessions" against Liverpool.

It didn't matter as 'MSF' reproduced those same ghosts in the Reds' 3-0 win.

Salah opened the scoring from Firmino's pass and Mane closed it thanks to the Egyptian's cross.

"They are fast and direct, our style is perfect for them, I know," Pep has said before the game.

"Their first two attacks ended in a goal, it's hard to accept," he moaned afterwards.