Pep Guardiola has jokingly credited Kevin De Bruyne for saving his job after the Belgian's late goal spared Manchester City from an FA Cup upset.

The City boss was in a jovial mood after the full-time whistle, reflecting on how Leyton Orient fans had jokingly chanted about his dismissal following Stefan Ortega's own goal that gave the League One side a surprise lead.

City's equaliser came with a stroke of fortune, bouncing off defender Abdukodir Khusanov before De Bruyne's winner, and Guardiola quipped: "They were singing 'you're getting sacked in the morning'. It's a routine in all the stadiums right now. But, with this result, I think my chairman is not going to sack me!

"It was a fantastic game. I don't know if the vibe is like this in League One for every single game, but it was really good in the stadium.

"You must behave properly in places like this. How many surprises have there been in the FA Cup throughout the long history? Our position is a little unstable emotionally and we have a lot of injuries. But that's why these results make me so proud and so happy."

City, gearing up for a pivotal Champions League play-off against Real Madrid on Tuesday night, witnessed their £50million new signing Nico Gonzalez sidelined just 22 minutes into his debut due to a hip injury.

Guardiola reflected on the injury, saying: "My first away game was against Stoke City - and I realised immediately what the game in England is like. Now Nico knows."

On the match itself, Guardiola expressed his satisfaction despite the scare: "Outside the first 10 minutes, we played a really good game. It's impossible to control a game going into the last few minutes winning 2-1. You are always going to suffer.

"It's my ninth season in England. I have played many times in this incredible competition. We were lucky in the end because they had chances but it's nice to be in the next round."

Leyton Orient's manager Richie Wellens, with roots tied to Manchester as a former United player, praised both teams: "I'm not happy because we've lost, but I am so pleased with the intensity and passion we showed - and at times the quality.

"You've got to credit City. They never panicked, they kept moving the ball, and although it sounds weird I'm glad it didn't go into extra-time because they would have run us into the ground.

"Would we have won the FA Cup. No - but we can get promotion."

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