Manchester City have suffered a major Covid outbreak, with 21 members of the squad isolating – including Pep Guardiola and his number two, Juanma Lillo. Of the 21 isolating, 14 are backroom staff, while seven are first-team players.
Tomorrow night's FA Cup third round fixture away at Swindon is still expected to go ahead, with assistant coach Rodolfo Borrell taking charge of the side and speaking to the press in place of Guardiola this afternoon.
Borrell on the outbreak:
"We had an outbreak, at the moment we have seven players unavailable, up to 14 staff. That's a big outbreak. We are getting it day by day, [and] don't know where it will end. At the moment it's seven players and 14 staff."
Borrell on Pep:
"He's fine. He has the virus. Fortunately, he doesn't have many symptoms. But we are permanently in touch, like we would be here but on zoom or via a call. Through technology instead of live."
Borrell on picking the lineup:
"It's possibly one of the easiest lineups to decide, we play with the ones available. We aim to play as much as we can, respect all competitions, keep playing and at this moment we can fill the team. I don't know if it can happen in the following days. We have some first-team players and some who will come from the academy."
Borrell on the game going ahead/potential postponement:
"We have prepared mentally for the game to happen. This is what we've done and we'll keep going. Tomorrow if it's not possible, it's out of our reach to know right now. We are prepared to play the game and mentally we are ready for it."
Borrell on disruption:
"All of us, all the clubs are suffering. Some right now, some later. We cope as best we can. We are going back to the protocols from the beginning of the pandemic, minimising the risk at the training facility. There is anxiety because we have to test, people are suspecting who will [it] be today, one, two, three less [for selection]? It's normal like any job or any club. We are coping, trying to establish the protocols and we are taking it day by day."
Borrell on which players are out:
"It's not for me to say. I don't want to say now in case I forget one. To fill in the whole squad and travel with five or six [players for the bench], we have to bring some players in the second team, but the outbreak involves players from the second team so they have had plenty of Covid cases. There are no excuses, we travel as a team, a mixture of both. We will go for the win and prepare for the best."
Borrell on Swindon/FA Cup:
"You know better than me, this is the oldest national competition. It's 150 years old, or something like that. A lot of history and lesser or smaller teams can beat the big opponents because it's a competition that creates a great atmosphere and enthusiasm, people are trying to make their town or village proud. There is a difference in the quality of players, but these are the games where everything gets very close because of the FA Cup.
"The FA Cup is very special. This is one of the titles we are most proud of achieving in the last 6 years. It’s important to do well and get into the next stage. It will be very close, like any other tie in this competition."
More from Borrell on Swindon:
"It's a team we've been able to watch including the last game against Northampton they won 5-2. They are a good team, play from the back, aggressive. We are ready and have to be ready for the challenge like any other team. We expect a very tough game."
Written by: @NA1907_
All quotes as quoted by Manchester Evening News and Manchester City.
Follow our Twitter account for reliable, live updates on all the latest news surrounding this story and everything Manchester City in real time.