Guardiola on City Gonzalez signing and FA Cup trip to Leyton Orient
07/02/2025
CFA, Mancheseter, UK
07/02/2025
CFA, Mancheseter, UK
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00Hi Pep, you brought in Nico Gonzalez on deadline day, you made it very exciting on Sky Sports
00:19News, what are you expecting from him and how important was it to bring him in immediately?
00:24Yeah, it's really important, it's a position that we were weak after the absence from Rodri
00:34as a young player, 23 years old, can play in number 6, number 8, more in the pockets,
00:39his physicality is a strong young boy, I know him from the academy in Barcelona, his father
00:46was working here, I'm really pleased for the club to bring him here for the next years.
00:54Just looking ahead to Leicester and Orient, they've had 14 clean sheets in Ligue 1, they're
00:58the best pressing side in the division as well, are you expecting any trouble from them
01:04this weekend?
01:05Yeah, of course, always we had problems away in this competition, FA Cup or Carabao Cup,
01:12away in the Champions League, in Ligue 1, even Ligue 2, always we struggled, but we
01:18are ready for the challenge, every game is a new opportunity.
01:21I'm sure Richie Willems will appreciate that.
01:24Just away from the match, and just focusing on Pony Shaw, who didn't play for Manchester
01:30City women yesterday after abuse that she'd received, is it now just part of being a footballer
01:35that you have to deal with abuse, racist abuse, it can't be right that this is part of the
01:40job description of a modern footballer, can it?
01:42We will be lucky, he just was four in the World Football, unfortunately he's in the
01:48whole entire world, look at the politicians, so what they say about this country is better
01:56than the other ones, what the other ones is not important, and all the people have to
02:01leave, more racist than that is impossible, unfortunately it's all around the world,
02:07and football is another expression, not for the fact that you are a woman, or you are
02:14in a different colour of your skin, you make you different, you make you better, every
02:18time I'm getting old, because I'm getting old, it's more difficult for me to understand
02:22on this simple basis that people can defend some stupid thing, so I support her like I
02:28support all the people, of course abuse, in terms of racism, or gender, or whatever.
02:38Jack Grealish played in the last round, started, he's not started since, when you needed someone
02:44to come on against Club Bruges, you went for Savinho, not Jack, you brought in another
02:50attacking player, you've spoken about Jack already this month, where is he, in your thinking,
02:57and what improvement?
02:58I'm so sorry on the minutes that maybe they deserve, but at the end the contribution from
03:06Jeremy or Savinho have been massive this season, and when he played, and I decided
03:12for him, this is the only reason why, it's not about absolutely personal, or I don't
03:16like Jack, or I don't have confidence, of course when you play one player more minutes
03:22than the other one you have more confidence right now, but I know his attributes, but
03:26it's just for the fact, the impact, one of the big big news for this season is Savinho,
03:30so it's the first season here, the impact in assists, in goals, in last game in Arsenal,
03:35they can incredibly step up in terms of defensively, and challenge the duels with Timber or whatever
03:42player, and this is the reason why, the manager has to sometimes select one player in front
03:48of the other, not because you don't like the other one, it's because you believe that player
03:51can give you in that certain moment of the season right now, better, no more than that,
03:57and of course I make mistakes, and maybe I should play like in other games, or maybe
04:00players don't play, they should not play, but it's my world, it's my life, it's our
04:05manager life, and you have to accept it.
04:07I think people don't disagree with your selections, but obviously look at Jack and think how much
04:17Manchester City played for him, what he did in the treble, what he can play like, and
04:21maybe wonder why he can't seem to get to the levels that you are demanding of your players.
04:27You are right about that, I don't agree with you, when we are not winning, they disagree
04:31with me, so the people agree when we win, when we are not winning they disagree, I understand
04:37all the comments, I accept everything, when people prefer one player than the other, that's
04:41why the football is so nice and so attractive, when the people are involved in the decision,
04:45you should be this thing, you should do this, you should do that, it's normal, and normally
04:50when we don't get the results that we expect to have the results, that is more open, and
04:55I understand completely, but my job is my job, and I have to do what I believe, I try
05:00to be honest with myself.
05:02Hi Pep, how good has it been this week to have a free week after the Arsenal result
05:10to prepare for this game?
05:12We trained yesterday and today, we get a day off two days because we have a lot of games
05:17we had and we will have, and I prefer instead of training the people go with the families,
05:22just rest a little bit, and yeah, it was fine.
05:25And especially with Real Madrid coming up pretty soon, how important has it been this
05:30week to prepare?
05:33Tomorrow after the game we play early at 12.30, so we will come back early here to Manchester
05:39and after we have time to start to talk, of course I had an eye against Madrid, but Leighton
05:45deserved my attention, it always has been like that, otherwise we would not get the
05:48amount of semi-finals, finals, the FA Cup in the last five, six years, so that is why
05:53I am concerned and focus on Leighton.
05:59And is there any chance of any of the injured players, Ruben or Nathan, playing this weekend?
06:04Maybe some of them, we will see.