Pep's Man City are the best team that I've faced in my managerial career : Koeman

Pep's Man City are the best team that I've faced in my managerial career : Koeman

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Everton manager Ronald Koeman has lauded Manchester City's quality and offensive style after their 1-1 draw at the Etihad Stadium. Koeman, who has played alongside Man City manager Pep Guardiola at Barcelona, has labeled this City side as the best he has faced in his long managerial career.

Maarten Stekelenburg, who saved two penalties in the match, was the hero of the day for Everton. The former Roma keeper kept out Kevin de Bruyne's penalty in the first half before Romelu Lukaku gave the away side the lead in the 64th minute. The Dutch goalkeeper also denied Sergio Aguero from the spot in the 70th minute, however, Nolito equalized for the home side two minutes later.

Everton escaped with a point from the match despite being the second best side on the pitch. City had 72.4% of the possession while taking 19 shots compared to Everton's three. Koeman conceded that City were the better team and that Everton were lucky to get a draw out of the game.

"They played fantastic football. They are the best team in my managerial career that I've played against. Really high, top pressing, high tempo...we make some mistakes because the pressing was so high,” Koeman said after the match, reported Sky Sports.

"If you look to the football, to the offensive style, the movement, the quality of the offensive players, they are in my opinion the best team in the Premier League. Not many teams will leave this stadium with one point," he added.

The result means City have now dropped 5 points in their last two games and are currently tied at the top of the table with Arsenal. Koeman, however, believes that not many teams will get a positive result at the Etihad given Man City's quality.

"They are a fantastic football team in every aspect of football. You need to have luck and a goalkeeper that plays the game of his life. You need a work rate within your team and I have to compliment my team, we had to fight.

"They were the better team and had more ball possession. They had the better chances and missed two penalties. But it ended 1-1, so that's a great result for us," he said.

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