Stefan Ortega opens up on behind-the-scenes struggles at Man City

Stefan Ortega admits he struggled to settle at Manchester City at the start of the season, but has put his head down in training to ensure he is prepared whenever he is called upon.

As second-choice goalkeeper, Ortega has been limited to cup appearances for City behind Ederson. He was brilliant in the Carabao Cup win over Chelsea at the Etihad, and has added some equally-influential performances against Chelsea again in the FA Cup and Liverpool in the League Cup. Against Arsenal on Friday, Ortega produced some fine saves to keep the scores level before Nathan Ake scored the only goal on the hour mark to send City through.

Ortega spoke after the game and alluded to the increased attention on the tie between two sides chasing for the title and with plenty of focus on the relationship between City boss Pep Guardiola and Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta. For Ortega, however, knowing this would be a rare start, the German

With Ederson firmly first-choice in the Premier League, Ortega has had to bide his time to impress Pep Guardiola, and he admits the first few weeks in Manchester were ‘rough’.

However, he says preparation is key to being ready as a second-choice goalkeeper, and that has been the secret behind his good form when he has been picked.

“It’s all about the training. When I don’t play so much, I have to improve in the normal routine which is training in the week,” Ortega explained.

“When I prefer everything in the week, I feel ready for the game, so it doesn’t matter if it’s a training game or a cup game like today. I feel really good. I like it here.

“The first four or five weeks were really rough for me to settle in but everyone at this club is really friendly and wants to try to help you so it’s easy to settle in. I tried to show my best performance and I’m also good on the ball – not only in shot-stopping. I felt ready and prepared today.

“It’s better to play these teams [like Arsenal and Chelsea] rather than those who are in the second or third leagues. For me I don’t have so many games, so these types of games are perfect for me. I really enjoy these games.

“I’m really happy for the win – there was pressure in the week, and we felt this. I think it was a bit different and more about the media before the game because of the history of the manager at Arsenal, some players who were here are at Arsenal too. That’s why it was a bit different but for me it was a normal game.”

With two huge Premier League games to come against Arsenal that are likely to have a huge influence on who wins the title, Ortega says City’s quality and experience secured the cup win – but warned his side that the league meetings will be completely different prospects altogether.

“For me it was really difficult because Arsenal tried to press man-against-man really high with speed, so it was difficult to find the right solution to play in the normal way we want to play,” Ortega admitted.

“There was a lot of long balls, and it was quite difficult – the transition from Arsenal was really dangerous. I think in the end we deserved the win just a bit more. We played with more experience at the end and showed we had a bit more quality in the right situations.

“Today was an FA Cup game which was important to win to get through to the next round but the next game against Arsenal will be a different game. It was a good way to show that we are here.”

“There was a lot of long balls, and it was quite difficult – the transition from Arsenal was really dangerous. I think in the end we deserved the win just a bit more. We played with more experience at the end and showed we had a bit more quality in the right situations.

“Today was an FA Cup game which was important to win to get through to the next round but the next game against Arsenal will be a different game. It was a good way to show that we are here.”