Pep Guardiola left an England duo who cost Manchester City a staggering £145m in total out of his squad completely for his struggling side's Boxing Day clash at home to Everton
12:52, 26 Dec 2024Updated 12:53, 26 Dec 2024
Pep Guardiola speaking on Amazon Prime Video
Pep Guardiola speaking on Amazon Prime Video(Image: Amazon Prime Video)
Jack Grealish, Kyle Walker and John Stones were all dropped from the Manchester City line-up ahead of their clash with Everton.
Pep Guardiola rang the changes after a 2-1 humbling by Aston Villa by called up Nathan Ake, Jeremy Doku, and Savinho to the starting XI, benching Stones and Ilkay Gundogan, while dropping Grealish entirely.
The £100m former Aston Villa man is mysteriously missing from even the bench, with no details disclosed, while £45m captain Kyle Walker sits out due to sickness.
There was a twist on the bench as well, as Kevin de Bruyne found himself demoted among a largely youthful contingent with not one, but two keepers waiting in the wings.
The injury bug hasn't been kind to the Citizens either, robbing them of Ederson and key figures Ruben Dias, Stones again, Rodri, hot prospect Matheus Nunes and youngster Oscar Bobb.
Manchester City's £100m record signing Jack Grealish has had a woeful season so far
Manchester City's £100m record signing Jack Grealish has had a woeful season so far
Guardiola's men went into the fixture slumped in seventh place, trailing four points behind surprise package Nottingham Forest in fourth. With eyes firmly set on clawing back into Champions League contention, December may see a freshening up of the ranks, particularly at the backline, reports the Mirror.
Speaking with Amazon Prime ahead of kick-off, a candid Guardiola admitted the squad's vulnerabilities. He said: "We struggle especially at the back, in the middle. I don't know if it's going to happen. I think we have to but I don't know if it's going to happen. The transfer window in winter is not easy."
Intrigue around Guardiola's own future has bubbled more fiercely due to some perplexing comments in recent interviews, all amid an uncharacteristic stumble in form which aligns with him signing on the dotted line to extend his tenure at the Etihad.
Don't miss a thing with football updates!
Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news? Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star Football email newsletter!
From the latest transfer news to breaking stories, get it all in your email inbox.
How do you sign up?
It only takes a matter of seconds.
Simply click on this link, then provide your email address and that's it, job done. You'll receive an email with all of the top football stories.
You can also sign up for our sport email, Off the Ball, for all the latest darts, boxing, snooker, F1 stories and more, right here
He said: "I like to be here. I love the club, the hierarchy, the people, the life in Manchester and many other things. Now more than ever. We have a lot of problems but let's turn it around. That's the target.
Article continues below
"When we won in the past, we had most of the squad. But now we have eight important players out. We cannot get out of this roll now. Football isn't predictable, so maybe when you think it's going to be difficult, you can win. Let's see.
"When you are winning, you think more and more on how to keep the run going. When it's not, we need to think more about what you have to do. We need to find a way. Results do help. We have played games where we were on the edge of winning, but lost. It makes it a little more difficult."
Everton's manager Sean Dyche made only a single change from the team which clinched a goalless stalemate against Chelsea last weekend, with veteran Seamus Coleman reclaiming his spot at right back.