Pep Guardiola's convincing answer

D E B RUYNE SHINES

Regular commentators in English football, Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher, both commented that there must be some problem between coach Pep Guardiola and star Kevin De Bruyne, causing De Bruyne to be on the bench. In the recent 0-2 loss to Liverpool, De Bruyne was only brought in at the end of the match, of course, he could not do anything significant. Guardiola explained that due to purely injury reasons, De Bruyne could not quickly return to the starting lineup when it took him 5 months to recover from the injury.

De Bruyne (center) is very dangerous when he returns to Man.City's main squad.

In fact, all of Guardiola's explanations were superfluous, because of course he (and De Bruyne) had to deny rumors that they were at odds with each other. But, Pep did ask a notable question: "Does Neville really think that I don't like De Bruyne playing?".

Even if there is a conflict, both Guardiola and De Bruyne are professionals - there is no need to prove this. On the contrary, Carragher and Neville's comments only help fans understand why Carragher has never coached, and why Neville's coaching career only lasted 4 months at Valencia, where he lost so much, was fired and no one invited him to coach again.

The most convincing answer is always the reality on the pitch. De Bruyne reappeared in the starting lineup and shone as Manchester City (Man.City) beat Nottingham Forest 3-0 in the midweek Premier League match. He scored 1 goal, assisted 1 goal in the first half, and participated in all important attacks of Man.City. He was also a creative source, not just actively receiving and passing the ball. Almost all teammates when having the ball passed to De Bruyne, so that he could decide the next situation. Even Jack Grealish, in a slightly strange role (playing more centrally instead of mainly on the wing as before), also appeared extremely comfortable, playing easily thanks to De Bruyne.

PRESSURE RELIEVED

All of this shows that Guardiola has chosen the right time for De Bruyne to return to the starting lineup. The Belgian star is in good form because of this. On the other hand, this is a team story, not a personal matter for De Bruyne. When asked about the situation of his teammates always passing the ball to De Bruyne in important moments of the attack, he appeared humble: "Maybe because I am the older player in the team. They want me to decide the problem, and I have that ability." This is a matter of trust. No one would put their trust in a player who is hated by the coach (as rumored).

When talking about Man.City, we must immediately mention the 7-match winless streak, including 6 losses. Now, there is another statistic that reassures the fans of this team: De Bruyne has never lost in 31 consecutive matches that he started for Man.City. He directly participated in 25 goals in that 31-match streak.

People used to consider De Bruyne as Man.City's "on-field coach". Coach Pep Guardiola's ideas about playing style and tactics are meaningless if they are not implemented as planned. And Guardiola, of course, just sits on the sidelines. On the field, De Bruyne is the player who supervises the whole team to implement Guardiola's professional ideas. The fact that De Bruyne always seems mediocre (compared to his own star level) in the EURO and World Cup arenas further shows the difference between a De Bruyne of the Belgian team and a De Bruyne of Man.City (or Pep).

There is not much to say about Man City's recovery. But for now, the great pressure has been relieved. At least, Pep Guardiola and his team have not fallen deeper into crisis. Pep himself has also relieved the pressure from the rumor that he "doesn't want De Bruyne to play". Carragher or Neville, in their commentary profession, can say whatever they want. Only Pep is miserable: When they say it,... there are many people listening.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/cau-tra-loi-thuyet-phuc-cua-pep-guardiola-185241205211416232.htm