Guardiola wants to surprise Man Utd
"I want to divide the minutes equally among the players, because I have some ideas, some thoughts - unusual things for the game against Man Utd," Guardiola said in a press conference on January 10 before the match. against Southampton in the quarter-finals of the League Cup.
The Spanish coach said he had not seen the last matches of Man Utd, and needed further analysis. He said: "I have to see how they play at home, and if they change anything. So I have not finalized the starting line-up yet."
According to the British newspaper Sportmail, Guardiola has changed many times when he was a guest of big clubs. This season, he let Joao Cancelo - who has a knack for being a full-back - play right midfield against Liverpool and Chelsea. In the 3-1 win at Man Utd in the semi-final first leg of the League Cup in 2020, Guardiola left Sergio Aguero, Gabriel Jesus as substitutes, while Bernardo Silva, Raheem Sterling, Kevin De Bruyne alternated the highest kicks in attack. After the game, De Bruyne said that Man City only took 15 minutes to complete in the training session.
Guardiola also emphasized focusing only on each match, saying that the goal of reaching the semi-finals of the League Cup is now more important than preparing for the Manchester derby in the 20th round of the Premier League on January 14. "The Premier League and other leagues still have many games," explained Guardiola. "The important thing is to create a strong team that motivates each other to win every game. With that mentality and mindset, Man City will have a great opportunity to fight for titles at the end of the season."
The Spanish coach left open the possibility of using a strong squad in the match against Southampton today because he wants to compete for the title in all four competitions. But Guardiola hinted at the possibility of continuing to leave Erling Haaland and De Bruyne out, like the 4-0 win over Chelsea in the third round of the FA Cup on January 8. "They've played a lot of games over the years. Does De Bruyne have anything to lose by sitting out for four or five days? I don't think so," he said.
Guardiola once excluded Kalvin Phillips from the squad because he was overweight and was not in the right condition to train and play after returning from the 2022 World Cup. But he revealed Phillips has changed, can start today. and want the English midfielder to be more determined to compete for the position with Rodri. "Phillips needs to fight for the official position with Rodri for the good of the whole team," Guardiola analyzed. "Phillips played very well at Euro 2021, has the spirit, the resilience, the fight and I believe he can do it."
After the Manchester derby, Man City continued to have another difficult match in the Premier League when playing against Tottenham at Etihad on January 19.
