Pep Guardiola is ready to be targeted by critics at Manchester City, despite having mainly enjoyed adulation in his managerial career so far.
The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss insists he is nothing special, explaining he only receives attention and fanfare because he has been able to win silverware.
Guardiola, who is preparing City to face Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Sunday, thinks all of the Premier League managers are operating at the highest level and accepts the critics will come for him before long.
The City boss was asked how he coped with the scrutiny of his methods and revealed he barely looks at what is said about him, even though he has been the subject of books and documentaries.
Do you know why? It is because we won, he sa…
Juan Mata has urged his Manchester United team-mates to retain their focus as they prepare to follow a Europa League trip to Saint-Etienne with the EFL Cup final against Southampton.
Jose Mourinho s side are still fighting on four fronts, having advanced their claim for a top-four spot with a 16-game unbeaten run in the Premier League and overcome Blackburn Rovers in the FA Cup fifth round at the weekend.
Sunday s EFL Cup showdown with the Saints at Wembley will provide the Portuguese boss with a chance to add to the silverware collected in the season-opening Community Shield win over Leicester City.
First, though, United visit the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard for the second leg of their Europa League round-of-32 tie, holding a commanding 3-0 aggregate lead.
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Desperate to find some much-needed stability this weekend, Manchester City will welcome Arsenal to the Etihad on Saturday evening.
Manchester City
Starting with the hosts, eventually having to settle for a point against Premier League returners Leeds prior to the international break in what was a thrilling 1-1 draw at Elland Road, Manchester City have really struggled to find their feet since opening the 2020/2021 campaign. While Pep Guardiola s men might have marked their return to domestic duties with a 3-1 victory away at Wolves, that was the Sky Blues only win from their opening three appearances. With some in their squad likely to have still been feeling the effects of their famous 5-2 drumming at the hands of Leicester on home …
Aston Villa defender Ritchie De Laet joined A-League club Melbourne City on a season-long loan.
The two-time Belgium international, 29, reunites with City coach Warren Joyce, who worked with De Laet at Royal Antwerp and while in charge of Manchester United s reserves.
De Laet, who was part of Leicester City s Premier League-winning squad in the first half of 2015-16, has struggled for game time since joining Villa two years ago.
Ritchie has a lot of experience at a very high level and his quality and versatility provides us with a number of options, Joyce said of De Laet, who joins City as a marquee player.
I know Ritchie well having coached him before during my time in England and Belgium. He can play as a defender or across the midfield with quality o…
Louis Saha believes fellow Frenchman Anthony Martial has all the characteristics required to go on and emulate Cristiano Ronaldo s achievements at Manchester United.
Martial arrived at Old Trafford from Monaco for a reported fee of £36million in 2015 and, despite such a hefty price tag for a teenager, has settled in well to life in the Premier League.
The France international has scored 10 goals in his debut campaign in England, even though he has often been stationed out wide by manager Louis van Gaal.
Saha sees signs that Martial can have a similar impact to his former team-mate Ronaldo, who was signed at the age of 18 by former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson.
I hope Martial can emulate what Ronaldo did at United, Saha told the Internat…
Napoli midfielder Allan has been handed his maiden call-up to the Brazil squad, while Paulinho has returned for the first time since the World Cup.
Allan was part of Brazil s Under-20 World Cup-winning squad of 2011 and left Vasco da Gama for Udinese the following year, establishing himself as a key player and earning a move to Napoli.
Tite joked that his assistant Sylvinho had pressured him in to selecting the midfielder, before later declaring the 27-year-old was selected for the friendlies against Uruguay and Cameroon in November on merit.
We have to monitor players who appear in Europe, said Sylvinho, who was impressed with Allan s displays under Maurizio Sarri. We always need to do constant monitoring.
As for Allan, he has been in Europe for seven…
As Sky Sports report, Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has told Esporte Interativo that Cristiano Ronaldo has asked him about the perks of living in China.
The coach and the player have worked together when Scolari was in charge of the Portuguese team between 2003 and 2008, and Scolari is now employed by Guangzhou Evergrande.
Ronaldo apparently asked Scolari about the life in China more than once, and the Brazilian cannot see why the star wouldn t play there one day. Scolari is of the opinion that a person like Cristiano Ronaldo, with his brands and an industry, would find endless opportunities in such a large market as the world s most populous country is. He also said that not every player experiences China in the same way.
Ronaldo started this season ext…
Newcastle United are more likely to sign Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford than Valencia s Giorgi Mamardashvili, according to reports.
Trafford was signed by Burnley from Manchester City last August .
He was instantly made first-choice goalkeeper by Vincent Kompany, despite a superb Championship season from Arijanet Muric in 2022/23.
Looking back on the 2023/24 season, it would be very fair to say that Trafford was not ready and lost his side more points than he won for them.
A season in the second tier could do him the world of good but there is a lot of talk of a summer transfer away from Turf Moor.
but it is who are believed to be leading the race for the 21-year-old goalkeeper s signature.
The Magpies are in the market for a new …