Pep Guardiola challenges Man City to reset Champions League mentality to join European elite

Pep Guardiola has told his players that Manchester City's Champions League defence will only be successful if the Blues don't have their eyes on the final at Wembley this season, as he told his players they are back at the bottom of the mountain this season.

Guardiola wants his City players to feel the pressure of being European champions while also focussing solely on qualifying from Group G when the new campaign gets underway against Crvena Zvezda this week.

City have a favourable group of Red Star, RB Leipzig and Young Boys, welcoming the Serbian champions to the Etihad on Tuesday. Guardiola has regularly faced questions on the pressure of winning the Champions League for the first time, and now has to change that approach to motivating his players to defend the title they have chased for so long.

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However, Guardiola has no concerns over how his players will adjust their mentality, stressing that they always approach the competition in the same manner - win their home games, and qualify from the group as a priority.

And captain Kyle Walker has also revealed that Guardiola showed the squad a picture of a mountain at the start of the season to stress that while they have reached the top last season, they are back at the bottom this term and must work their way back up.

"We're at a massive club for a reason because the manager believes in us and we're all great players. It comes from within," Walker explained. "The hunger is still definitely in the changing room and I hope the manager still wants to win more. You can see what he is like in games and