115 charges result date and an Oscar Bobb injury update – Every Word from Pep Guardiola’s pre-Aston Villa press conference embargo

Pep Guardiola has once again addressed a wide range of talking points during the second-half of a pre-match media conference this week.

Manchester City return to Premier League action on Saturday lunchtime as they visit Aston Villa’s Villa Park hoping to make amends for a calamitous contest against Manchester United last time out.

Josko Gvardiol’s first-half header was the difference between the two sides until the final minutes of the match when a Bruno Fernandes penalty and Amad Diallo effort turned the scoring on its head to claim all three points for the Old Trafford club.

Aston Villa is no easy feat however, with Unai Emery’s side consistently impressing across competitions barring their own blip in form in recent weeks, securing some memorable victories particularly in the UEFA Champions League.

Matters have been further complicated for Manchester City with the injury to Ruben Dias and doubts over Ederson’s fitness, with the centre-back in particular expected to be ruled out for up to four weeks with a muscular problem.

Following Friday’s pre-match media duties, here is every single word from Part Two of Pep Guardiola’s press conference at the City Football Academy before this weekend’s lunchtime kick-off against Aston Villa!

On Jack Grealish’s season so far

“He started well and after had two or three setbacks due to injuries and also he’s a player that needs time and minutes to get his form for his physicality, but he’s strong, coming to his, I would say, home.”

On whether Jack Grealish’s lack of goals worries him

“Well, last season was not a good season for him and now he has his setbacks and of course the people up front has to produce as much as possible, but it’s not just Jack. A few of them, we’re struggling to create a little bit up front, but always I am optimistic about my players that they will be able to turn and perform well.”

On whether players should be concerned about joining Manchester City due to the 115 charges and uncertainty

“Winter time is not easy to buy some players that make an impact, especially players up front I would say. Of course, Julian (Alvarez) was an important player in terms of numbers, for the minutes he played, always was effective.

“But we have Phil (Foden) and we have Oscar (Bobb) and both we didn’t have this season. When I thought about a replacement for them, OK you have these two players even (James) McAtee can play there, always I trust a lot with the process, Oscar is a guy like he showed he can score or assist a lot, and Phil is not necessary to say how is the impact he has in our game.

“And in that situation with what happened in happened this season. So that’s why we struggled a little bit in that concept, for the players up front, to give us the numbers that we need to be solid in our games.”

On the 115 charges uncertainty for players being targeted by Manchester City

“I don’t know. It’s going to happen in winter time, I don’t know. I know the people expect in that, but I don’t know I think in February, March will be the sentence, and after we will see.”

On whether he would consider returning to a false-nine just to change the system

“With Erling (Haaland)? I prefer to play with Erling. I didn’t think, in the situation that we have, don’t let Erling play. Absolutely not! No, no, I didn’t think about that. Always I played false-nines for the quality specifically for the players I have in that moment, and some games; for example playing against man-to-man, teams man-to-man, I love to play against false-nine but I have Erling and I have to adapt.”

On what he has not seen from James McAtee and some of the other young players

“Yeah, it’s a good question. But in that period that we have I want to make responsibility for the senior players. So the last game for example against United I thought to put Jahmai (Simpson-Pusey), he could play like he played really good, but to put that pressure in that situation, young players playing in that position, it’s a little bit…

“Maybe it’s unfair, maybe I’m wrong, it happened in the past, but I have the feeling that in that moment, the players have to show and prove who we are as a team, what we have done in the past, I have to give them the keys to try and lead us to try and turn around the situation.”

On whether the players who have brought success before are the ones that need to get Manchester City out of the run

“We have to do it all of us, but of course there are players that have more experience in that position and normally these type that have a lot of minutes… I’m not saying it’s not going to happen, but so far I decide in that way.”

On whether the younger players are ready to come in

“Always they are ready! The young players always they have the ability, don’t defend anything in terms of the past, and they are free, and they can do it. Yeah, absolutely.”

On Erling Haaland’s minutes and whether it’s sustainable for the body/mind

“I see him well, I see him fine, and the reason why maybe he’s not so productive in that situation is for the way we are playing, that we don’t produce this amount of chances that always we were able to do in the past, and that’s why when he is him, surrounded for two, or three, or four central defenders it’s not easy for him. So you have to create more good game, more our play better, to create the spaces for him.”

On the importance of getting a player to play in the same position as Erling Haaland for him to rest

“Erling is irreplaceable. I’m saying the positions that are close to make some rest, but that is not the point. And of course we need all of them, our best version for all of them, not just one specific player.

“For me it should be so easy, blaming on that position, I would be so selfish in that terms. It is what it is. It’s about us, it’s not about… I’ve said many times, if I said to the players, ‘If it’s the problem of just one specific player, it will be easy, the decision would be easy, but it’s not about that’.

“Many, many, many, many of the goals we concede we give them away, we give them. So it’s not about one specific lot of situations, that situation is more difficult. And you have to work on that, and step by step, the moment some results will be back, we will be better.”

On Oscar Bobb’s expected return

“I don’t know with Oscar. Still he didn’t train with the team once, so we will see. I think it’s a question of the bone and when it’s fixed, not in pain, he will be ready. And I think for his physicality with some weeks of training, he will get a little bit his rhythm. Not like we saw in pre-season, but quite similar.”

On the importance of the Txiki Begiristain to Hugo Viana transition being handled smoothly

“I think Txiki is doing the same we have done, thinking what can we do if you have to do something in winter or next summer. He will be involved in the transfer window. I think talking with the club, with Hugo maybe, especially when he will finish his part in Lisboa, and doing the same what they have done.

“And after that, yeah, there will be changes just for the fact that the persons are different and of course, the people who are a long time here will have to welcome and help Hugo to settle here and understand the team, understand the club, and it’s going to happen.”

On whether Txiki Begiristain will help in the winter and the summer

“Yeah. The club, I think from what we spoke and we talked, in the winter we are going to do something if really, really we need it or we believe something, we can find something, not just for four or five months, except exceptional things, but for the next three or four (years).

“In the winter it’s more difficult to do. But we will see, not just for that situation. I don’t know in the last years how many times we went in the winter (market), maybe with Aymeric Laporte years ago.

“Always we are not a big fan of that, but the circumstances this season are special, have been special, and we have to see if we have to do something if possible, if not we are going to wait in the summer time thinking about how we finished the season, how the players finish, how they performed, knowing that we have again a short, short holidays next summer, and next year we will be here and we have to see what we have to do.

“We’ll talk, and we’ll see what the market is possible, because maybe it will not be possible, we’ll see.”

On any new players having an immediate lift within the Manchester City squad anyway in January

“Yeah, but it’s not easy to do that. With the teams don’t sell, they have to be players that maybe don’t play, or the ones they don’t want to sell they are so expensive, so it depends on the market, it depends on situations, we will see.

“And to lift the team is simple; it’s players back. Players back, except Rodri, having the squad there. And after that we will be the team like maybe we were, but apart from that there are situations that don’t depend exclusively for that and we were not able to solve it to get results that we need right now.”

On having two new long-term injuries

“Long-term no, but listen when you are in September, October international break it’s not much, when you are in November, December, January, February when you lose three weeks or four weeks you lose seven or eight games. This is a lot!

“And this is a little bit the situation because Eddie has been struggling with some niggles in his leg, and now he doesn’t feel completely fine, and of course Eddie is so important for us for his personality, for everything. And of course, Ruben (Dias) is, but it’s what I’ve said!

“He played five games in 14 days, or five games in 15 days – something like that – coming from injury because we cannot replace because they are injured, and he’s injured again. It happened with Nathan (Ake) and this roll, this again, and again, and again, I don’t want to make Nathan play every three days, three games every three days, because we know the history of Nathan.

“But we didn’t have alternatives because John (Stones) was injured, Manu (Akanji) was injured, and the players were in that position, and that’s why still it’s for that. You can rotate a little bit for the schedule, and now you cannot do that.

“And that’s why I said it’s survive, and try to get results, our mood will lift and our game will be better, and accept the situation that is what it is. This is what I want to transmit to the team; don’t pretend about the big targets.

“We are in the position that we are right now and I have to accept it, and as much as you accept that we are not in our best, we are not fine, we will be better.”

On whether the two days off this week were beneficial for him

“If we win, yeah! If we don’t win, ‘Why didn’t you train?!’ I have to make decisions, take decisions all the time, I’ve done it all my career, I love to do it, and I thought in that moment what happened, it’s better to not see each other.

“Go home, see your families, our families, forget football, we have three, four days to prepare the game against Aston Villa and the other one, sometimes it’s good, it’s not about the training. Now everything is our minds, in our heads, and how you intervene that, that’s the secret.

“Intervene with 21, or 22 and everyone has to do it. We can be better in that department, the other department, yeah of course, but we have been better in eight years, you know that? So that’s why, we’ve been I’ve said not good results for 45 days, we’ve been in incredible results for eight years!

“This is the difference in the situation, and everything is in our mind, and you have to get back to that with the results, but especially with the players back. That is what we miss this season! This season the team was really, really good.

“I remember the first game or second game I saw the people on the bench or the people warming up before the game, and I said, ‘Wow! What a squad we have!’ We can make a lot of things, we can move a lot of players, we can do it.

“But step by step, day by day, week by week, and that’s why we start to win games by 2-1, 1-0, but OK it’s normal, we won a lot, but immediately start to fall down four central defenders at the same time and everything, and after that start to don’t get results, and doubts, and of course it’s happened, it’s happened to all the teams, it’s happened to us, and we didn’t expect to do it as much long as it’s going but what can I do?

“It’s good, yes, moments, work harder, and try to give confidence to the players, themselves, and back to our basics, what we are strong as a team, and come back to that side.”