'A horrific day': Bleak prediction for legendary coach Pep Guardiola as Manchester City crash out of Champions League

Pep Guardiola wants to continue as Manchester City manager despite their crushing Champions League exit against Real Madrid on Thursday (AEDT).

Kylian Mbappe's sublime hat-trick handed Madrid a 3-1 second leg win in Spain's capital as the defending champions cruised into the round of 16 with a 6-3 aggregate win.

It continued a turbulent season for City, who have won the last four Premier League titles but this season sit fourth - 17 points behind leaders Liverpool.

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Spaniard Guardiola had reached the last 16 in his previous eight seasons with City, his three with Bayern Munich and his four with Barcelona.

At one point, Madrid fans at the Bernabeu Stadium ironically chanted for "Guardiola to stay" with City.

"I still want to continue," said Guardiola, who signed a two year contract extension earlier in the season.

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He acknowledged, though, that a new cycle is coming.

"We already started it, it's normal," he said.

"Nothing is eternal. Some players are at an age that they can still give us a lot. Nothing is forever, but we can't deny what this group of players have done, winning six Premier League titles in seven seasons and reaching the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in this competition. This time we had to play these two matches against a very strong team and they were better than us."

Stan Sport's Spanish football expert, Semra Hunter, was at the Bernabeu and believed the outlook was bleak for one of the world's sharpest tactical minds.

"I will say for Guardiola, for City, it did feel like an era-ending performance," Hunter said.

"It just feels as though he's probably not going to stay on after the (British) summer. I'd be very surprised if he does, unless he does manage to get that rebuild... it was very deflating, I think for him, for the team, for City."

Guardiola looked agitated at times while trying to convey instructions to his players.

On other occasions, he looked resigned and desolate, sometimes with his hands in his pockets or with his arms crossed.

Guardiola turned around in apparent disgust after seeing Mbappe score the opening goal in the fourth minute.

Guardiola went back to his bench for a few moments after the France forward added the second goal in the 33rd minute, and again after Mbappe completed his hat-trick in the 61st.

When goalkeeper Ederson resorted to a long kick while under pressure in the first half, Guardiola twice turned to him with his arms spread wide, as if asking "Why?"

"One of the worst performances from City in many, many years," former Socceroos captain Craig Foster said on Stan Sport.

"Their capitulation was extraordinary... in that second half, they actually looked as though they had given up and I hadn't seen that from a great, older team before. Usually he (Guardiola) comes in and he challenges the opposing coach with some sort of difference or maybe a little change or something.

"That didn't happen today. It's a horrific day for Manchester City... and obviously it's been an even more horrible night for him (Guardiola) being an ex-Barca player and being absolutely humiliated at the Bernabeu... I didn't expect that it could be this bad. I mean they (Madrid) were literally strolling."

After the final whistle blew, Guardiola congratulated Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti before going back into the locker room.

City had reached the round of 16 every time since 2012-13.

"This year, for several reasons, we lost consistency," Guardiola said.

"We achieved something unique in our country and in Europe, making it to finals that we had never made it before. This year we couldn't do it. We have to learn and start to make decisions regarding the team and everything else, and try to finish in the top four or top five (in the Premier League) to have an opportunity to be back next season."

Guardiola was hoping he could fix the team's issues in time to avoid the early elimination this season, the first in which the league phase and the playoffs stage was introduced.

But the poor performances that affected the team the whole season proved costly, as it couldn't qualify high enough to avoid the playoffs and Madrid.

"The best team won," Guardiola said.

"We've had a poor season. When you finish 22nd (in the league phase), it's a sign that you haven't played well."

Guardiola, who led City to their first Champions League title in 2023, has been saying his team is "miles away" from where it should be, though it had showed spurts of the dominant squad that he led to a series of titles in recent years, including in the 4-0 rout of Newcastle in the Premier League on Sunday (AEDT).

A series of injuries have not helped Guardiola this season, with two of them affecting the team on Thursday (AEDT).

Erling Haaland couldn't start because of a knee injury suffered against Newcastle and John Stones had to be substituted less than 10 minutes into the match, also because of an apparent knee problem.

Guardiola has been without world player of the year Rodri for nearly the entire season because of a knee injury.

Rodri's absence helped explain the team's inability to dominate possession as it previously did in recent years, and the defensive woes have also proved costly this season.

The Spanish midfielder is set to return soon, giving Guardiola some hope for the rest of the season.