- Colin Cranmer
"You know the answer, prepare your questions better" - Pep Guardiola pre Leicester Press Conference
Pep Guardiola spoke to the media ahead of Manchester City's Saturday evening home game against Leicester City in the Premier League. The Man City boss was asked about Ederson's heroics against Bayern, Kevin De Bruyne's reaction to being subbed off, Arsenal's advantage in the title race only playing once a week, Phil Foden's current status, and Jude Bellingham.
How is Phil Foden?
"At home..."
"I don't know. I think he will be back to the training centre. I think he feels better. I spoke to the doctor's three days ago and he feels better but still he is not ready. When he starts to train we will know it and you will know it through our social media. After that he will be closer to coming back."
City are in great form, what's changed?
"Consistency and the fact that we are winning games and we could not do it earlier in the season. Our good games were really, really good as well but we were not consistent [in terms of results]. Everyone knows if we lose those games we will not win the title, that is why our intentions and details are higher. It is the same tomorrow, if we lose the game we will not be champions. If we win we could still be there because we cannot forget we are six points behind Arsenal, a team that has dropped few points throughout the season and play one game a week with a lot of time to recover, [we have to] analyse. It will be difficult to win and drop points, that is why we have to be there as much as possible."
"No, in general [we haven't done anything different], they [Arsenal] are the second most consistent team of the league so it is not bad at all. Our problem is Arsenal was amazing so far. They do really well. but our performance in general is not bad at all. I would say it is not a disaster. We are still there but there is another one better than you, you have to accept it and admit it and keep going."
"Honestly, I don't know [whether Arsenal playing one game a week is an advantage]. Sometimes I will experience every four days games and we are in a rhythm and this helps us. We will play a lot of competitions to the end and it helps us. Sometimes we play one week lose the rhythm when it is a week [between games]. Sometimes when we play Saturday [then] Tuesday, the minds of the players are always in here. If we have one week or two days off we lose this rhythm. In six or seven weeks it is over and the players will do everything to keep going."
"The only impact I believe is the fact that everyone knows, in their complete body from the top to the bottom, that if we lose it is over. It is the best way to compete, because in every action and set pieces, the players are living because they feel it in that action that we need to win it otherwise we are going to lose the game. This is when you have the best [performances]. I have doubts that experience counts a lot. Age of Roy Hodgson, 73/74 years old to understand if experience is important, I need more years to know if it really counts. The reality is we are six points behind, no guarantee we will win the games in hand. The best team in world for build-up, the best team is Brighton, there is no better team in bringing it from the 'keeper to the last quarter. No team better right now. Arsenal is at home [against Brighton] but there is no guarantee. The reality in the table is that we are six points behind. We need to win our games, that is the reality. At the end of the games, that is when we will see the reality and the reality is that we are six points behind."
Ederson:
"I have said many times. Normally a few times he has to save it and he made an incredible save [against Leroy Sane]. That is the margins in this competition. Maybe the result would be different if Ederson didn't make that save. It was a tight game and in the real moments we were there. That is why we got a good result."
Leicester's new manager is Dean Smith:
"It is not easy [to play against his teams], we know from Aston Villa. Firstly, I am really happy he is back because of the times we have faced each other, first Aston Villa and then once Norwich. I know from Jack [Grealish] how exceptional person he is and how good an environment there, I know the good vibes he creates and the team will want this a lot right now. We have to adapt immediately after ten/fifteen minutes. I have no idea honestly what he is going to do. I am pretty sure in this position that the impact of a new manager will be massive. They are in a difficult situation, I am pretty sure we will have to be at our best."
"We are definitely only focusing on this game [rather than the second leg against Bayern Munich]."
Kevin De Bruyne reaction to being subbed off against Bayern:
"If I need to speak I will speak [with him] but I didn't see him these days. It is not the first time it has happened in world football, [it has] happened at all the clubs and it will happen again in the future."
"I understand completely [his reaction]. But in the same time I understand [Riyad] Mahrez didn't play, Aymeric [Laporte] didn't play, Sergio [Gomez] didn't play, and Kalvin [Phillips] didn't play. Every time I make a selection, I thought about the players who didn't play, everyone wants to play. Can you imagine these seven years without Kevin De Bruyne? It's impossible. You see the games against Liverpool, against Burnley, against Southampton. Every game is different, I saw, in that moment, I felt it, [I could] change for Julian, I could change for the other ones. That's why I'm here. Players believe it's personal or believe it's for that reason, it's because in that moment I tried to do the best to win the game and I believe in that. You know if it works: how good I am, it doesn't work: how bad I am. It is what it is."
Is Jude Bellingham a player City are interested in?
"How many press conferences you come here? You know the answer. It is not necessary [to ask this question], you have to prepare better. You come here, prepare the questions, knowing me, what answers I am going to [give] to your questions. Next one."
Written by: @colgeogcra
Some quotes as quoted by Manchester Evening News and Manchester City.
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