Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is hoping that more fans turn up for the Carabao Cup semi-final clash against Manchester United on Wednesday night after a sparse crowd saw their 4-0 win over Fulham in the FA Cup yesterday.

With supporters needing to pay extra for cup ties, only 39,223 turned up to see the Citizens thrash the Cottagers at the Etihad Stadium, but Guardiola says he is looking for an improvement on those numbers when they face United:

“Hopefully in the next game against United our fans can come and make our stadium full.”

It is a harsh criticism from Guardiola considering the number of factors that played a part in the low attendance. As well as an additional cost to supporters, they were playing a lower league side with the match also being televised.

The United game should see a return to a full house later this week, with it being a crucial game that could see them progress to a domestic cup final at the expense of their fiercest rivals.