After Manchester City kicked off their Premier League campaign in style with a 4-0 thumping of Wolves, Pep Guardiola would have been a happy man.
Guardiola lauded Tijjani Reijnders’ heroics against Wolves while also praising his other new signings like Rayan Cherki, Rayan Ait-Nouri and James Trafford.
However, in the grand scheme of things, the Catalan boss must be concerned about the size of his roster — considering key players like Rodri, Phil Foden, Josko Gvardiol, Mateo Kovacic, Ederson and Savinho were not fit to feature on Saturday — and once they return to action, it will be a challenge for him to manage his squad.
Pep Guardiola complained about Manchester City’s squad size as one of his main gripes is how he would be forced to leave several players out of his matchday rosters — a harsh reality that could impact the harmony within his squad.
Pep Guardiola could be keen on Ilkay Gundogan sale by subbing Nico O’Reilly on instead vs Wolves
In the aftermath of Manchester City’s win against Wolves as well, Guardiola admitted that there is an excess of players in his squad via HaytersTV, saying: “Too many players. Today, it was Rodri, because he’s still not ready and Phil and Eddie, and Kovacic was out, he will be back, Savinho was out and Josko. And look at the bench, it was Nathan and Gundo [Ilkay Gundogan]. I like squad depth to try and compete in all the competitions but I don’t want to leave players at home.”
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“I don’t want it. This is not healthy. You cannot create a good vibe, good atmosphere to compete, everybody has to feel like I can play, I can help, I can compete with my mate with the opponent, I need that and the club knows it since last season, this is not news. But the situation is what it is and in the next two weeks, people will talk with the players and agents and we will try to find solutions.”
It seemed like Pep Guardiola took matters into his own hands against Wolves by bringing Nico O’Reilly on to replace Bernardo Silva in midfield instead of Gundogan, who would like to join Galatasaray if he left the Sky Blues — as per Manchester City News.
However, Okan Buruk, the Galatasaray boss hinted Gundogan will not leave but Guardiola’s decision to keep the German on the bench and give O’Reilly a runout suggests he is ready to move him on — considering the youngster does not have too much experience as a midfielder at senior level.
Nico O'Reilly looking on during Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester City - Premier League
Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images
The fact that Pep Guardiola did not start Gundogan against Wolves in the first place was surprising, considering he seemed set to play as Manchester City’s defensive midfielder in Rodri and Kovacic’s absences.
However, perhaps the two-time treble-winner has realised that this season, his City side must be far more robust in the middle of the park compared to the previous campaign where teams were slicing through their middle like a hot knife through butter.
As a result, Nico Gonzalez started as Manchester City’s number six and excelled, with only time telling whether Gundogan, who Martin Keown called “underrated” departs the Etihad Stadium by the time the summer transfer window slams shut.
Ilkay Gundogan has already hinted where his future lies
There is not much time left in the transfer window and as a result, if City do indeed wish to sell the legendary midfielder, they will have to act quickly.
Considering Gundogan hinted he eyes staying at Manchester City, it will be interesting to see whether Pep Guardiola’s decision to keep him on the bench will affect his future.
In May, the six-time Premier League winner said: “Nobody has said anything to me so far!”
Gundogan added: “My contract got extended another year so obviously that’s what I expect right now.”