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Pep Guardiola orders struggling Manchester City team to ‘play through pain’ amid hope for Kevin De Bruyne

Posted on by L. Dreeye
Pep Guardiola orders struggling Manchester City team to ‘play through pain’ amid hope for Kevin De Bruyne

Manchester City may be without ten first-team players at Bournemouth while others struggle with the extra workload, but Pep Guardiola is not accepting any excuses.

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 30: Rico Lewis from

Kevin De Bruyne is close to returning to Manchester City, although there could be some positive injury news at Bournemouth on Saturday.

But even in the midst of an injury that he himself described as an “emergency”, Pep Guardiola sensationally warned his players that they must be prepared to play despite the pain if they want to be part of his City team and challenge for titles every year. City are almost certainly missing six players and at least four players will undergo fitness tests on Saturday to see if they are fit to play.

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Guardiola said he only has 13 players to choose from after this week’s defeat to Tottenham and confirmed he plans to include some academy players in his squad at Bournemouth. However, he also expressed optimism about injuries, suggesting that some injured players could be placed on the bench at the Vitality Stadium while De Bruyne took a step forward in his own recovery.

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“The players who returned, some of those who were absent, trained well today,” Guardiola said. “Maybe tomorrow they can help for a few minutes. We’ll have to take risks, take risks with the players.”

“I have players who can play 20 minutes, no more. Players who can start, but I don’t know who. Try to be smart, talk and see. Listen to them. Some people say, “Pep, I don’t know.” Okay, ultimately the decision is made based on how the players feel. I’m not in the players’ hamstring or ankle, they have to tell us.

“Kevin is getting better. The last two or three days the doctor told me that he had made a step forward in terms of pain.”

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But while there is optimism on the horizon, Guardiola has made it clear he expects players to put their bodies on the line and play through pain if they are needed at Bournemouth and next week in the Champions League at Sporting.

“They are used to playing with some pain,” Guardiola said. “It could be a small thing, or it could be a danger, but other than that, when it happens… almost all players today play with pain. There are times when injuries become injuries and be careful, but sometimes if you have problems you have to play.”

“Rafa Nadal played with pain his entire career. He played. And I won, I don’t know how many Grand Slam tournaments. In modern football you have to deal with this, otherwise you won’t be able to cope with games every three days at a top club.”

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“We will adapt tomorrow and in the next games. We have an incredible group of players with a strong mentality in difficult times. This week is very important before the international break. Away and in the Champions League.”

“There are players who say, ‘OK, I’m ready,’ and there are players who are more inclined to nitpick their history. This is human nature. There are others who just go, go, go, but that’s not the case. It doesn’t matter what happens. It’s not that they are more or less (focused), but that they can adapt to withstand an incredible amount of effort every day more than others.”

Guardiola’s call follows his insistence that City should not sympathize with their injuries. He explained that City have not changed their training methods this season (if at all they are training less) and pointed to Liverpool’s injury problems over the last few years as a reason not to complain. He refused to apportion the blame, instead calling on his team to be ready for the moment when they were all fit and ready to challenge for titles again.

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And for the same reasons, he insisted that there are no plans to enter the transfer market in January to replenish the squad. “Maybe in January we will have all the players in shape except Rodri,” he countered.

“When we are all together, the lineup is sufficient, complete, it’s great and at its best. When everyone is fully focused and in good shape. But at certain points in the season. I remember in the past, one, two, three years ago, Liverpool had a lot of injuries and they were struggling. That’s the thing, tomorrow we’ll have to adapt and focus.”