Manchester City: Guardiola wants more from shy guy Phil Foden
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola wants to see more from midfielder Phil Foden. "He still looks at me with a little bit [too much] respect; it's not necessary".
Pep Guardiola wants to see teenage midfielder Phil Foden step up and embrace being part of Manchester City's squad. Foden, 19, has played just 10 minutes to begin the Premier League season, coming off the bench in a 5-0 win over West Ham. The England youth international is highly rated by Guardiola, but the City manager wants to see more from him.
Everything is in place for Foden
"He is a shy guy. I would like him to talk more to me, but all the time it's me who is going over to speak to him," Guardiola told UK media. "He still looks at me like a little bit [too much] respect he sees me like a manager – but after two or three seasons that's not necessary, but it's normal. He is 18, 19 years old, now he is playing for [England's] Under-21s and he is going to play and he is nice, he is OK, everything is in the right position."
Guardiola has plenty of talent in his squad and City's central midfield is stacked with quality, including Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan. The Spanish tactician said Foden, like others, would have to be patient in regards to game time.
Strength and depth in the City squad
"That is the reality in a team that achieved four titles last season. If you don't have this squad you can't achieve four titles – impossible," Guardiola explained. "So they have to fight and be patient and don't complain too much, don't blame too much, because the time is coming. They have to be prepared because I saw today the schedule with all the fixed plan of the Champions League, away, home, and I said, 'Wow, how many games do we have?' Everyone is going to have minutes."
Brighton at home
City continue their Premier League campaign at home to Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.