Guardiola press conference (27th July 2016)

[MarsLlama]

Summary of Pep's press conference in China today:

-City are looking to arrange a friendly next week with a Championship or League One team to replace the cancelled United game.
-Pep reckons Fernandinho could play anywhere bar goalkeeper and likes midfielders to play at CB.
-Fernando could also play at CB, although he's ''not as quick''.
-Fitness is important as Pep wants to play in all four competitions as long as possible.
-Clichy is in charge of choosing music on the coach.
-Pep will let the players decide who is the captain in the absence of Kompany.

 

[kippaxwarrior]

Apparently we are looking to arrange a friendly next week at The CFA with a championship or league one side

 

[Ric]

You can tell he loves Fernandinho already. It'll be interesting to see who the players decide for the captaincy if Kompany isn't available at the start of the season. Maybe Fernandinho's in with a shout for that too.

 

[Rolee]

You can tell he loves Fernandinho already. It'll be interesting to see who the players decide for the captaincy if Kompany isn't available at the start of the season. Maybe Fernandinho's in with a shout for that too.

I recall Kolarov saying he had nicknamed Fernandinho 'the director' because he was always telling team mates where they should be on the pitch in a vid last season so wouldn't be surprised to see the players choose him.

 

[domalino]

You can tell he loves Fernandinho already. It'll be interesting to see who the players decide for the captaincy if Kompany isn't available at the start of the season. Maybe Fernandinho's in with a shout for that too.

Fernandinho was captain against Munich, maybe the players have already decided. I know Hart was missing, bur I can't see who else would be captain with Yaya and Zabaleta one foot out the door.

 

[Marvin]

Has Kompany been ruled out of the openers then?

 

[Proy]

Yep. Fernandinho for captain. He's such a quality footballer. One of our best buys.

It's so refreshing seeing a different style of management. The players are clearly engaging.

I like how he singles players out for praise. It's something Manuel would never contemplate doing.

It's also pretty clear that Kompany is quite a distance from being fit. By the time he is, we will be in a position where we are fairly settled and I think he will have a job getting back into this team. Under Manuel as soon as he was fit he was in. That's because our cohesion defensively was horrendous and one or two players have alluded to that already. I don't think Pep will drop somebody purely for the sake of it being the club captain. I really don't.

If we are playing well enough and not conceding goals he is going to have to work incredibly hard to get in.

 

[SheeshKebab]

Actually really looking forward to Fernandinho's role this season. He was our best player last season by far and I think he's one of the most under-rated players in Europe.

 

[supercity88]

Actually really looking forward to Fernandinho's role this season. He was our best player last season by far and I think he's one of the most under-rated players in Europe.

Completely agree, he's an incredible footballer. So aware of what's happening around him, can get forward with ease, can read the game and intercept easily and is so good on the ball as well. He's also intelligent and knows when to go down to win a foul and slow the game down. I agree with Pep, he could play anywhere. Would prefer him to remain in the middle of the park but he could quite easily covert into a centre back like Mascherano. I feel he needs to be in a position where he can contribute in attack as well though.

 

[MarsLlama]

Fernandinho is so adaptable, I wouldn't be surprised to see him at striker or right wing either. CAM would be a great position for him if we didn't already have Silva and De Bruyne (and presumably Nasri) fighting it out for that spot. I prefer him as a box-to-box midfielder right now because he can get forward and attack.