Guardiola doubles down on striker stance after clinical Chelsea scalp
Pep Guardiola has backed his Manchester City side to keep winning despite not replacing Sergio Aguero this summer after beating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
The Citizens lost a club legend when the Argentine opted to leave following a decade of service at the Etihad Stadium. The champions tried to sign Harry Kane from Tottenham but could not come to an agreement over his price. They strengthened the midfield with the £100m capture of Jack Grealish from Aston Villa.
But they have yet to add a world-class striker to the ranks. Gabriel Jesus is the man that Guardiola has turned to in order to fill the void left by Aguero’s exit.
The Brazilian has never been a regular starter during his five seasons at the club. But he has been given the nod five times this term.
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The South American scored the only goal of the game as City downed the Blues 1-0 in west London. Guardiola was delighted with the team effort.
And he is now ready to put his feet up and watch events unfold across the Atlantic.
“Today we played for each other, ran for each other and passed the ball for each other,” he told BBC Sport. “Now I’m watching the Ryder Cup and I’m seeing how they play for each other. That is nice when you play football too. It’s just three points of course, but the way we played was so good.”
The Spaniard was pleased with Jesus’s contribution but is not duly concerned that he did not replace Aguero in the off-season.
“Sometimes we believe we need a proper striker to finish. But the important thing is the way we play,” he added. “The most important thing is doing it as a team and as a unit. It’s like last season. Sergio was injured all year and we won the Premier League.”
Guardiola proud of City record
The victory moved City on to 13 points and sees them right in the mix at the top end of the table. The three points made the former Barcelona boss City’s most successful manager in terms of wins.
And the 50-year-old admitted his pride when asked about the accolade.
“I’m so proud. We’ve done it at Stamford Bridge at the last Champions League winner,” he said to BT Sport. “We’ve been magnificent together. It makes me proud, a little bit for myself but especially for the club.”
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