Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has clarified the reasons for his preference in currently opting for Jack Grealish ahead of Phil Foden in his line-up selections for the Premier League champions.
Guardiola’s City dropped yet more points in the race for the top-flight title in their final match of 2022, having been held to a 1-1 draw by Everton on the weekend.
Current league top striker Erling Haaland’s first-half opener was nullified by by Demarai Gray’s sublime strike, who then combined well with his Merseyside teammates to shut the defensive door on City to hold on for a crucial point in their bid to avoid relegation.
Post-match, Pep Guardiola received flak from many supporters on social media after the game for retaining Jack Grealish in his starting eleven for a prolonged period of the match ahead of Phil Foden who had been benched for the third successive game after the FIFA World Cup.
Clarifying his decisions following the 1-1 draw with Everton at the Etihad Stadium on New Year’s Eve, Guardiola revealed that despite Foden being able to operate in “one thousand positions,” Jack Grealish offers something more.
“Phil can play in one thousand positions,” Guardiola opened. “I see something on the pitch, in the training sessions, and I use my intuition to use Jack in these games because he gives us extra passes.”
He continued, “Phil is better when more vertical. Both can play together and combine. The way we played against Leeds, knowing their defence was completely different, was really good.
“The way we’ve played in the last three games is one of the best since I’ve been here.”
Manchester City is back in action on Thursday night as they take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
With Arsenal currently seven points ahead of Manchester City, Guardiola will be well aware that anything but a win against Graham Potter’s side could have negative implications considering Arsenal’s dominance at present.