Soccer-Guardiola hails 'magnificent' pilot after failed attempt to land in high winds

(Reuters) - Manchester City's bumpy midweek flight in from Lisbon amid high winds had everyone worried before it was diverted to Liverpool but manager Pep Guardiola praised the pilot on Friday for keeping a calm head and reassuring the passengers.

Winds from storm Dudley buffeted their flight as it attempted to land in Manchester before the pilot aborted and took the decision to land at Liverpool's airport instead.

Storm Eunice has also wreaked havoc in Britain, with more than 400 flights cancelled.

"When I saw the video it was more scary than we felt. It was bumpy... It was a moment we were going down and immediately the engine started to roll on and we go up," Guardiola told reporters.

"In the moment, we said 'oh, something happened'. We had a pilot who did incredibly well to talk to us and he was so calm. We tried again to land in Manchester... then landed in Liverpool.

"The pilot was magnificent because we felt really anxious but thanks to the way he talked to us, everyone was calm."

Premier League leaders City host Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday and Guardiola said he expected the north London side, wounded by three consecutive defeats, to make things difficult.

"To lose four times in a row is not easy for top teams," Guardiola said. "They have a lot of weapons, Son (Heung-min) we suffer every time, with (Harry) Kane, (Lucas) Moura -- they have a lot of quality."

Guardiola also hailed Spurs boss Antonio Conte, saying he had put his stamp on the league when he won the title with Chelsea but would need time at Spurs.

"He arrived and his impact was clear, many teams started to play five at the back - before (it was) always four," Guardiola said.

"He arrived and world football copy-pasted it... Everyone wants to play in