**Manchester City are unlikely to focus in on utilising Antoine Semenyo’s long throw-in abilities upon welcoming the Ghanaian to their squad this month.**
While Semenyo’s arrival from Bournemouth has generated significant excitement, Pep Guardiola appears determined to ensure the focus remains on broader tactical and structural development rather than niche set-piece traits.
The Ghanaian made a remarkable first impression in City colours during the FA Cup third-round victory over Exeter, contributing both a goal and an assist in the emphatic 10-1 win, instantly underlining his attacking versatility.
However, Guardiola has consistently stressed that integrating a player into City’s positional and pressing systems takes precedence over isolated attributes. With the club currently balancing domestic commitments, Champions League fixtures, and a congested Premier League schedule, refinement remain the core priorities for coaching staff.
This approach also aligns with recent comments Pep Guardiola made across several press conferences, where he has spoken about choosing “priorities” amid fixture congestion, particularly with injuries at centre-back and a demanding calendar.
Speaking to reporters during a recent media conference, Guardiola was quizzed for his thoughts on whether Manchester City could look to utilise Antoine Semenyo’s long throw-in abilities during the second-half of the campaign.
“I have many thousand other priorities than that. It’s not a big issue to make the team improve. It’s a detail, yeah, we’ll think about it, we’ll talk about it, but that’s not the point,” insisted the Etihad Stadium head coach.
“Listen, when you win seven games in a row or 11 unbeaten, you have really, really good things. And there are ones that are not good things, not now after three games that we could not be able to win or even lose, but cannot win, but it’s the same in seven,” he continued.
“And the amount of time that we have, there is no time, because obviously we have a lot of games every three days, three days, three days, three days, you have to choose the priorities and priorities will not be long throws, I’m sorry.
“Maybe in time, one day we’ll talk about it, but there are other things more and more important to make the team grow, grow as a team.”
Pep Guardiola’s comments suggest that while Antoine Semenyo’s long throw-in could eventually become a useful weapon, it will not be a defining feature of Manchester City’s attacking strategy in the immediate future.
Instead, the focus will be on embedding him into the team’s pressing structure, positional rotations, and link-up play with the likes of Erling Haaland, Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva, and Rayan Cherki among several others.
Given Semenyo’s explosive debut and his physical profile, there is already optimism he can offer a different dynamic in wide and central attacking areas through his power, pace, and directness against low defensive blocks and in transition-heavy matches.