Manchester City Playermaker Kevin De Bruyne has left Manchester City this morning to join shocking Saudi Arabia Club

Pep Guardiola has been reticent in recent press briefings. He had something to say after Manchester City’s triumph against Bournemouth, revealing that his squad was tired, but overall, he represented a manager becoming tired of regular media appearances.

Given the weariness comments, expectations for the FA Cup preview for the Luton trip were low. But Guardiola has a knack for surprising, and he was in a much better mood in front of the cameras as he discussed City’s ‘defining’ fixture list in March, Jack Grealish’s fitness, and how Liverpool and Arsenal have celebrated recent successes.

Guardiola was similarly chatty during his embargoed press conference. When asked about Kevin De Bruyne’s future and Jurgen Klopp’s replacement at Liverpool, he declined to comment directly, but what he did say was unusual coming from the City boss.

De Bruyne-Saudi Arabia links
It was only a matter of time before Kevin De Bruyne became the latest player to be linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League. He meets the profile as a well-known figure over the age of 30, who may be looking for one last big payday before retirement. Guardiola instructed reporters to question the Belgian himself about the validity of the allegations, but he did insist that his talisman stay and finish his career at the Etihad.

“It’s a question for him; I’d like him to stay, but I’m not sure,” the manager explained. “I’ve heard some links, but I’m not sure if there’s an offer or if Saudi Arabia wants him. I’d love for him to stay till the conclusion of his career, but everyone is everyone.”

City has a long-standing policy of not standing in the way of a player who wishes to leave and has an appropriate offer. Riyad Mahrez and Aymeric Laporte both left the Etihad Stadium for Saudi Arabia this summer for a total fee of £55 million. De Bruyne is under contract with City until 2025, when he will have turned 34.

Can Alonso succeed Klopp at Liverpool?
After Liverpool won the Carabao Cup on Sunday, giving Jurgen Klopp another trophy on his farewell tour, Guardiola was questioned if the German’s departure will make his job easier or harder. “Liverpool will hire a good manager but lose an exceptional manager,” said the City manager.

Later, Guardiola declined to comment on reports tying Xabi Alonso to the Liverpool position, but spoke highly of his former Bayern Munich midfielder’s performance at the top of the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen. The manager praised the player’s unblemished record in all competitions with Leverkusen. “He was an extremely intelligent player. “What an intelligent player.”

Guardiola went on to remark that he had always expected Alonso to get into management because to his playing ability. He stated: “When holding midfielders ask you questions about the game, you realise that if he retires and is at home with nothing to do, he will say, ‘OK, I’m going back, my business is world football.'”

“Normally holding midfielders like him, [Javier] Mascherano, [Sergio] Busquets, the holding midfielders I had, Rodri, [Ilkay] Gundogan, they will be involved in football for sure because they have a global vision, the perspective is different.”

If Alonso replaces Klopp on Merseyside, may we see another master-versus-apprentice battle in the Premier League next season?

Progress on last season’s point total
When asked if he remembered the mood at this point last season, Guardiola confessed he couldn’t. Given everything that has happened in the last year, that is understandable. The thinking was that in February 2023, City will be losing to Tottenham and not quite firing on all cylinders, akin to their current performances.

Guardiola does remember, however, that City has more points than they did at this point last season, demonstrating consistency in both outcomes and, more importantly, performances. When it is tempting to dismiss any City performance that falls short of perfection as a calamity, the manager remains focused on the big picture.

“We have one more point than last season in the Premier League right now,” he said. “But Liverpool has plenty; they were sixth at this point and are currently top of the league. Arsenal has five, six, or seven more points than they do currently, but look at how they’re performing. It’s up and down.

“We’re identical to last season. I don’t remember how it was in February of last season; were we five or six points behind Arsenal? I was hoping that since we had them at home, we would be able to [turn things around]. They didn’t maintain their rhythm from the first half of the season to score 50 points; otherwise, we couldn’t catch them even if we played exceptionally well. We now have three teams, including Villa. Tottenham have a game in hand. Everything is possible with three teams and one point.

Bobb’s spending frenzy.
Guardiola had confirmed Oscar Bobb’s new contract earlier in the day, and then advised him to enjoy his pay increase. He swiftly backtracked, but there was appreciation for a guy who graduated from the academy and earned a spot in the first team.

“Without application he would not be here, his commitment, work ethic,” Guardiola said in a press conference. “The most difficult part is now up to Oscar. The easiest option is to arrive, create an effect, and then play. The most difficult one is to stay there for an extended period of time; in the minutes you play, perform effectively in order to earn more money; more minutes — money!

“That’s the most challenging thing. Millions of players can arrive and make appearances, allowing a young player to emerge. Ah, but being in the Premier League with Manchester City for so many years is the most challenging thing.”

De Bruyne is ready to start.
Good news for Fantasy Football managers: Kevin De Bruyne is set to start again for City, even if the next match is in the Cup. Guardiola acknowledged that De Bruyne was on the bench for tactical reasons at Bournemouth, saying: “At first his restart was entirely different than with Erling, who required time; it was a bone (injury), Kevin was muscular, out for four or five months.

“After he needed minutes and minutes, after he played two or three from the start, and after he had a little setback due to niggles, he said, ‘I don’t feel comfortable’; he had something in the muscle, and the game we played against Bournemouth, because of the way they play, I told him to stay on the bench and maybe play in the second half. And we’ll see tomorrow. But that’s fine.