Jack Grealish injury development and relegation insight – Every word from part two of Pep Guardiola’s pre-Tottenham press conference

Around 75 per cent of clubs within the Premier League are hoping Manchester City are relegated from the division, Pep Guardiola has claimed.

It was one of the many subjects discussed by the 53-year-old as he returned to media duties at the City Football Academy on Friday afternoon, less than 24 hours after the club unveiled a blockbuster two-year contract extension with the Catalan tactician.

That move keeps Pep Guardiola as Manchester City manager until at least the summer of 2027, ensuring that the club can now move forward into their immediate future with sole focus firmly on their competitive targets.

Speaking ahead of Manchester City’s return to action against Tottenham, here is every single word from Pep Guardiola during the second-half of his pre-match press conference!

On doubts over signing a new contract

“Time. Time because we started really well, we won the Community Shield, we won one title this season again, we started top of the league and we dropped for, I would say, obvious reasons, we dropped points.

“But I don’t have any doubts about the players, I’m sorry, otherwise if I had doubts I would not extend. I love, I like still to work with them and still I know how they behave in that moment. But it happened yesterday; every time I extend a contract, for the first time, it’s the last two (years).

“People don’t stay 10 years in one club, 11 years in one club, it’s difficult to find, right? So today, all the clubs after a month, they doubt if the results are not good. So I stay here long, and always when I think, I think maybe it’s the last. No? Ok, six years here, seven years here, eight years. It will be enough. But every time I arrive in the last and we are good, I am good, and yeah, here we are.”

On only needing two hours to agree a new contract – how did the meeting come about

“Yeah, we talked, well we talked in the past with Khaldoon (Al Mubarak), of course with Ferran (Soriano), with Txiki (Begiristain) and I listened to their vision and what they think, and OK they let me think, let’s see what happens. Like I said many times, what’s going to happen is going to happen. And in that moment, I said, ‘OK, I think it’s the moment to do it’.”

On Kyle Walker playing both of England’s matches during the international break

“No, if he’s fit I like them to play in their national teams. For me, it’s not a problem! Don’t misunderstand me; I wanted Jack (Grealish) to go to the national team, I want Kyle (Walker) to go to the national team, I want Max Alleyne to go to the national team!

“Never, ever in my life I would say to one play to don’t go to prioritise the national team, but if you are not fit, if you are not good, you cannot play with the national team! Because here you cannot play, why can you play in the national team?! It’s the only subject that is quite obvious, right? That’s the analysis.

“But of course, I want. Kyle has a dream to make 100 games for the national team. I want to cancel this dream of him? Absolutely not! I understand. But at the same time, I don’t want you to play there when you are not in the right conditions, and maybe have a problem because Kyle played the previous time with the national team and came here and stayed 10 days without playing.

“And without him, we have to use players with a lot of games in the CARABAO CUP against Tottenham, and after that game the four central defenders were out! We could not play central defenders in proper conditions against Bournemouth, in proper conditions there. People say we’re without Rodri, yeah we’re without Rodri of course we miss him – the best player in the world.

“Imagine our period in Barcelona, in that moment Messi was the best player, playing that season without Messi? Do you think we would win the Treble? I don’t I win the Treble? I don’t win the Treble. Win six in a row with Barcelona without Messi? I don’t win six! Rodri is out, BUT I didn’t have four central defenders.

“How important is Ruben (Dias), and John (Stones), when they’re fit? Tell me. And Nathan (Ake), and the other ones? We would not play in that positions. So with Kyle, I’m not blaming Kyle, you understand me, you understand the message that I’m saying? With Kyle, you can use him, he cannot play the minutes like Ruben was a little bit poorly in that position.

“One game a week, the top teams in Europe play in other competitions. It’s another competition. It’s another history. Bournemouth play one game a week, Brighton play one game a week, six days or seven days to prepare for one game. Give me that! Give me, give me! Give me that! The Premier League is the real, the real… No, no, no!

“I play 20 more games a season than you! But I’m complaining? No, because we won, I’m sorry, six Premier Leagues, doing that! Doing in that way! I don’t complain at all. But why did we win it? We were fit. We had injuries, muscular, one week, two weeks.

“Oscar (Bobb) four months, do you know the best player, do you know our high pressing with Oscar how it is? He can run with three (players), he has an incredible talent, the intention with two central defenders and full-backs at the same time. We can stay high, we recover, and without him we are less.

“He was the best player in pre-season, the injury and four months out. Rodri, and the other ones. So it’s more difficult. But we have to find a solution, we have to break that moment. But do I say to Kyle to not go to the national team? If you are fit, Kyle, I encourage him to go to the national team. Defend your country, and play as best as possible.

“Play 100 (games), and after if you want 125, go for 125! But if you are not (fit), you cannot go. It’s like last season; we played the quarter-finals of the Champions League against Real Madrid, go to a FRIENDLY game – I don’t understand UEFA or FIFA who decide to do this, I’m sorry!

“Because we are fighting in competitions, and competitions, and bringing to the right moment of the season for the Premier Leagues, for the European competitions, for a FRIENDLY game, and after comes back injured! NO! Not because I work a lot, my staff work a lot, the players work a lot, these guys work a lot, and it cannot be!

“But what I said to Jack; you think I have a problem with Jack. I would love him to go to the national team! Of course he has to go! But 17 days he didn’t train and he has to go to the national team? No. He has to recover well, and after for the next time, go to the national team! This is my view, and I’m not going to change my opinion for that, of course.”

On whether Jack Grealish is fit

“Yeah. We trained two days together, and he trained really good!”

On what happened with Jack Grealish – the FA said something different

“I don’t know! It’s happened, forget it. I want the best for Jack, in the national team I want the best for Jack. I want the best! They said, ‘No we communicated’, I don’t know! The doctors said to me he is not ready to play. Before Brighton, the doctor said to me he is not ready to play.

“And I believe my doctors, why? Because they are every single day there. And after if they talked with the doctors of the national teams, not England itself – I know people from England, I have a top relationship, believe me – it’s not about that. It’s about that I know they want it, but they have 200 players to select, so if Jack is not fit, he has to recover for many reasons; it was a long time there, and I think he has to recover because I need him.

“And when he will be playing good here, he will go with Thomas (Tuchel) for the national team because he performs well here. Otherwise you don’t go to the national team if you don’t perform well here. Why did Rico (Lewis) go to the national team? He is still 20 years-old. It’s because he is performing well. His main target is here, and to be here you have to be fit, you have to rest. And after that, for the quality that they have, they go immediately.”

On the importance of the transfer windows coming up and Txiki Begiristain’s exit weighing on whether he was going to stay at Manchester City

“The answer is it will come naturally. We will not do the club like every season. There are seasons when you buy five players, there are seasons like this season when you buy one and (Ilkay) Gundo comes back. Because when everybody is fit, I don’t need (more players).

“I think right now the squad is exceptional. But we had a lot of problems, recently we had a lot of problems and we did not have the ability to play the players. Today in modern football you cannot change seven players and bring in seven players. It’s not the right way. But in one, two, or three, four reasons, Txiki (Begiristain) will help us until the last moment and with Hugo (Viana), he’s going to help us afterwards.”

On 12 Manchester City players being over 30 – significant change needed

“It depends on how they perform. Do you know how many good players there are over 30? I saw Real Madrid with Casemiro, Toni Kroos, and (Luka) Modric more than 30 and won the Champions League, Champions League, Champions League and playing every three days! It’s not about that.

“Players are 33, 34, 35 playing all the season playing incredibly well and helping the team. The reality is not 23, 24, 25 because when you are more than 30 years, you have experience, you have something that young players cannot have. You cannot have just young players, or just players over 35, you have to have a mix, and we have a mix.

“We have eight, or nine, or 10 with 21, 22, Josko (Gvardiol), Erling (Haaland), Phil (Foden), Rico (Lewis), Oscar (Bobb), (James) Macca, and someone else, Jeremy (Doku), Savio – we have a lot, a lot of incredible top, young players, and most of those over the age of 30 and a perfect age to still do it.

“What is going to be the decision? We win or we lose? We are in the bottom? The club will take the decisions; manager, players. We have to win again our future. We have to perform well to stay here.”

On the importance of family/other coaches when weighing up a new contract

“Yeah, important.”

On the rumours about Manchester City – charges and APT rules included

“Yeah (I enjoy it). I prefer not to be in that position but once it’s there, I love it. Because when you believe in your club, and you believe in the people there because I see what they said to me and the reason why and everything with what happened, I said OK.

“So we’ll see, that’s why I cannot say because we are waiting for the sentence in February, March, January, I don’t know when it’s going to happen, but at the same time I like it, yeah, I want.”

On the importance of reaching 10 years at Manchester City

“No it’s not for the number that it’s special. One main objective or main target is not becoming something or the numbers or whatever, it’s be happy. Wake up in the morning, come to do my job, and still I like it. Prepare the game for tomorrow and this is the only reason why I want to be here.

“Numbers are here, and tomorrow will be there, and 10 years is a consequence of something. I said, I’m here 10 years because we won a lot. Otherwise I would not be here. 100 per cent, and I would love the club the same, how they treat me like I love Bayern Munich. I don’t have any bad word about Bayern Munich.

“Of course, Barcelona is my club, where I was born and gave me absolutely everything. So it’s not about that. I didn’t extend because, ‘I want 10 years’. No. ‘I would like to have the milestone, decade’, no. That is not the reason why. Nine years is enough, eight would’ve been enough. As much as I’m good, the rest is not important.”

On the UEFA charges, Premier League charges, and APT rules’ impact on his Manchester City stay

“No I don’t live with that. I know when I come here you ask me and I read something about the situation and I said, ‘See and wait’ and the people start to say you have to be relegated immediately, like 75 per cent of the clubs in the Premier League they want it. Because I know what they do behind the scenes, and this kind of stuff. But I don’t live with that.

“I live with the team, four defeats, what do I have to do, my energy is here. Sometimes you ask me and I remember, but I don’t live thinking all the time with that. It’s the lawyers for both sides and the people are in charge. I don’t think, honestly, I don’t think it.”

On when his feeling towards staying at Manchester City changed

“When I signed the contract, two more years, OK, and when I start the last one I said, ‘OK it has to be the last one’. Always I think about that. Otherwise I will extend six years! But it’s not, but the situation is sometimes it looks like you don’t believe me when I said I didn’t know yet and what is going to happen is going to happen. It’s true!

“When I have doubts, because I have moments that I want to stay, and no I’m tired, my kids are away from me, most of things, but I arrive in moments because I believe something is going to happen, and one moment you say, now is the moment to leave, or now is the moment to stay – and I waited for that. And it happened this time, and it could happen in two months or three months.”

On why he doesn’t feel tired or needs a break

“No, I’m tired. Sometimes I’m tired. Of course I’m tired. Sometimes it’s, ‘Oh god another game!’ Yeah, sometimes. It happens. The difference is it helps me. For the fact we win, win, and win, it helps a lot. Our life is better when you win. And when you win, and win a lot in these last years, it helps to continue.”