The Brazilian will end a nine-year career in the Premier League champions next month, because he wants to return to his homeland and play more regularly. Fernandinho has made just 11 appearances this season, four since the beginning of the year, and the 36-year-old is unlikely to be in the starting line-up for the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final at Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. Asked if he would like to stay at City for another year, Fernandinho said: “I do not think so. Yes, I want to play more. I will return to Brazil. I decided with my family, what is most important to me. And some in the club know it “. However, one of them was not Guardiola. “I did not know,” said the director. “You gave me the news. We will see what happens at the end of the season. I said many times we will see what happens “. When asked again, Guardiola said: “I said at the end of the season we will talk – maybe it’s a family decision, maybe he wants more minutes. I would love to be with him. “ Guardiola suggested that Tziki Begiristain, City’s sporting director, may have known, but insisted that revealing Fernandinho’s future in this way was nothing to hide. “Maybe Tziki knows it and did not tell me,” said Guardiola. “I do not know. It’s a surprise to me. I’ll tell him [Txiki]: ‘What happened?’ But I know his [Fernandinho’s] intentions. Another player would do it to his advantage. “Knowing Ferna will not be that.” Guardiola can understand his reasoning for leaving. “Absolutely. I want the happiness of my players and we will definitely play for him tomorrow and give him the best farewell moment, reaching the Champions League semi-final again and trying to get through again. “I understand that the players want to play, it is completely understandable. Not just because he’s 35 or 36. Look at what happened to Ferran Torres: he wanted to play, so he went to Barcelona. “I understand that Ferna wants to return to Brazil, with his father and mother there, and I’m sure the club will help him do what he wants.” The Fiver: sign up and receive our daily football email. Fernandinho later wrote on Twitter: “I was 100% honest and spontaneous in answering this question in today’s press conference. But anyone who knows me also knows that my greatest honesty is with Man City and my duties as team leader. “ City leads 1-0 against Atletico. “We can be better than the first game,” said Guardiola. “It will be different due to the fact that we played here [home] and defended deeply most of the time. It is not going to happen this time. There are times when we have to defend ourselves. You have to adapt. I said after the first part: “You made them perfect guys”. We will try to pass. “ Ruben Dias will travel as a member of the team after recovering from an injury that had ruled him out since the beginning of last month. The center back will not start.
