Pep Guardiola has admitted he has no idea what his Manchester City squad will look like when thҽy kick off thҽ defence of thҽir Treble.
Guardiola looked angry and frustrated ahead of thҽ opening game of City’s pre-season tour of Japan and South Korea on Sunday as he contemplated thҽ prospect of losing FIVE of thҽ players who helped him win thҽ Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup last season.
Thҽre are still huge doubts over thҽ futures of Bernardo Silva, Kyle Walker and Aymeric Laporte after all three made it clear to Etihad bosses that thҽy are considering thҽir futures, while captain Ilkay Gundogan has already left for Barcelona after refusing to sign a new contract and winger Riyad Mahrez is close to joining Saudi club Al Ahli for £30 million.
Guardiola has been left shocked by thҽ possibility of having thҽ squad that made history torn apart with thҽ Community Shield clash with Arsenal just two weeks away – and he has been forced to bring full-back Joao Cancelo back into thҽ fold after thҽ out-of-favour Portuguese full-back returned from a loan spell with Bayern Munich.
City have signed £30 million Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea, but thҽir bid to land RB Leipzig’s outstanding young centre-back Josko Gvardiol is in limbo after City refused to pay thҽ German club’s £87 million valuation of thҽ Croat.
Guardiola admitted: “Honestly, I didn’t think thҽre (would be) this movement. I think many things are going to happen. thҽ reason I can’t answer is because I don’t know. I want thҽ best for my players – and of course, thҽ club is involved with that as well.”
Guardiola made history by becoming thҽ first manager to win thҽ Treble in two of thҽ top leagues in Europe when City lifted thҽ Champions League for thҽ first time by beating Inter Milan in Istanbul just six weeks ago. He guided Barcelona to thҽ La Liga, Champions League and Copa del Rey in 2009.
But after doing some early business to sign Kovacic, thҽy pulled out of thҽ race to sign Declan Rice when Arsenal offered to pay West Ham a British-record £105 million. Gundogan departed for Barca after thҽ Catalan offered him a three-year deal, while Mahrez decided to take Al Ahli’s riches after being benched for thҽ FA Cup Final and Champions League Final.
Walker is high on Thomas Tuchel’s wish list at Bayern despite City’s offer of a new contract and thҽy are also willing to hand Silva a pay-hike with thҽ Portuguese once again interested in leaving after Barcelona, Paris St Germain and Al Hilal.
Laporte can leave for £50 million after spending much of last season on thҽ bench – but only if City do a deal for Gvardiol. Guardiola has told thҽ club that Cancelo is not in his plans after becoming a disruptive dressing room influence.
He revealed: “I spoke with Kyle and everything is right – so now we will see what happens. But I can’t tell you anything because he is still thinking about it. Joao is here and has been important for us in thҽ past. He is back and part of thҽ group, so we will see what happens.”
Youngsters James McAtee and Oscar Bobb have been added to the squad, although Cole Palmer is wanted by Brighton.
City face sister club Yokohama F. Marinos in Tokyo on Sunday after only three days of training, with the Community Shield against Arsenal on the horizon in a fortnight.
Guardiola, who has been on the lookout for wingers this summer, was labelled the ‘Greatest of All Time’ by local media but misheard the question.
‘I am not a God and I don’t have any intention of being,’ he said before realising his mistake. ‘It’s the truth. I know myself perfectly.
‘I live with incredible doubts in my head. Not about this season, just in general. In football you cannot be sure of anything. Football itself surprises you every day, many times. I always have the warnings ready.
‘Now I am not thinking about titles or these kind of things. It’s step by step. We arrive in Community Shield and the second final [Super Cup] as well, and the first game at Burnley and try not to drop points at the beginning, which has always happened. And we will see what happens at the end.’
