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Hripsime Hayrapetyan

02-10-2020 | 18:05 Football
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Press conference: Pep Guardiola on injuries, Ruben Dias, Champions League draw, Leeds and more

Manchester City will be on action for their next Premier League clash against Leeds United on Saturday evening. Citizens will be looking to celebrate a victory over the newly-promoted rivals, following the club's shocking 5 - 2 loss to Leicester City. And ahead of the match City boss Pep Guardiola has met the media. He has given an injury update, claiming Ilkay Gundogan is back in the squad having recovered from his positive Covid diagnosis.
"Today was his first day back with the rest of us. He will train with us during the international break and we will see."
Manager also spoke about Gabriel Jesus' fitness:
"He’s not ready hopefully after the international break. Every season he is a better player than season before. For strikers it’s very difficult in small spaces."
What concerns the club newcomer Ruben Dias, he is possible to make his debut this weekend against the Whites.
"He will get it and we are delighted to have him here. He trained two sessions. Settles good and is part of the team. We will see."
Yesterday evening, City's Champions League group stage opponents have been confirmed, while speaking about the results, Guardiola said:
"The draw we cannot control it. Last season people said we were lucky but you saw what happened with Atalanta. "After the break we have all the clubs with an incredible schedule and we’ll see which games will be first. In the Champions League every game is tough and hopefully we can recover people and arrive in the best conditions possible."
When being asked about Premier league rivals, Leeds United, the Spanish boss said:
"They do exactly what they have to do. They are a team, fight for each other, defend a lot around the box. They have good build up. At the right moment, they arrive with a lot of players. I played three times against Marcelo at Bilbao, and every game was so difficult."
Guardiola also shared his praise for the Whites manager Marcelo Bielsa. He has admitted that winning more titles doesn't make him better manager than the Argentinian professional.
"Cruyff was the most influential (to me) because I was four years with him and when I started as a manager he was an incredible help, but Marcelo, he is the person in world football I admire the most.
My theory is the manager is not about the titles because I feel far away from his knowledge. My teams won more titles than his, but in terms of knowledge of the game, I am away from him. It is a good present, a good gift to have him in the Premier League."
Source: MEN
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