Two more years | Why Pep is staying on | New injury blow
38:22 Share

Learn from the world's best all in one place with Masterclass, the only streaming platform where you can learn and grow with over 200 of the world's best. Masterclass always has great offers during the holidays, sometimes up to as much as 50% off. Head over to masterclass.com slash Spotify for the current offer. That's up to 50% off at masterclass.com slash Spotify.

This episode is brought to you by Honda. When you test drive the all-electric Prologue SUV, there's a lot that can impress you about it. There's the generous passenger space, the clean, thoughtful design, and the intuitive technology. But out of everything, what you'll really love most is that it's a Honda. Visit Honda.com slash EV to see offers.

Whether you're ordering wings for the game, whipping up a seven-layer dip, or ordering pizza, there's something about football that makes you want to eat. And this football season, Uber Eats has the best deals on game day food. No matter what you're craving, from two-for-one pizza to buy one, get one wings, Uber Eats will be dropping new deals each week, all season long. Uber Eats, official on-demand delivery partner of the NFL. Order now. Terms and conditions apply. See app for details. ♪

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Talking City podcast from the Manchester Evening News. I'm Tyrone Marshall hosting today. I'm joined by Simon Bukowski who isn't on the other screen but he's actually sat right next to me. So close I can almost touch his flannel shirt. Keep me warm on this chilly Manchester afternoon. We've just been at Pep Guardiola's

usual Friday press conference, one with a little more interest than usual given his contract extension. And we're recording in the City Football Academy at the moment. So we just heard from Pep and written a few stories from it. First of all, Simon, how are we? Yeah, why does it feel so weird to be sat this close considering we'll be in exactly this position in the press box for Spurs? I don't know. We usually like a bit of distance on podcasts, but we've been brought together as...

Pep has been brought back into the Manchester City bosom. That's it. Pep brings everyone together. One of his great strengths. It is nice to record a podcast all together for once. I say all together, there's only two of us. It's nice to record a podcast together for once. Nice to see another face and not have that usual lag that we have. Is he still talking when the screen freezes? Should I talk? It all flows a bit better in person, believe it or not, from this convoluted intro. It'll get better, I promise. Do stick with us.

So, yes, like I said, we heard from Pep a couple of hours ago now in his pre-Tottenham press conference, which was obviously dominated by talk of his contract. And that is where we'll start. That contract officially announced on Thursday night, muted earlier in the week, a two-year contract extension. What do we make of that? I mean, not a surprise that he's staying. I think that's been...

been well trailed, but a surprise. I think it was a surprise he was staying. I mean, the expectation was at the end of last season that he would leave. Even last week, you would speak to people who know him very well and people at City, and they were convinced he was off. He has come round to stay in, but there were still a lot of people who did not think he would. And of those who did think he was staying...

very few of them thought he'd stay for two years so it's you know the classic pet playbook of I'm gonna do what nobody else expects me to do and and keep going uh you know and he he spoke today in his press conference he said he's done two years because he doesn't want next year to be exactly the same and you can see that but it you know still still a surprise I would say

Yeah, and like you say, he said, he was asked about two years and he said initially he's staying for the weather while looking out at slate grey skies and freezing training pitches. But yeah, he said, I don't want another autumn like this, basically. But it does also raise the question that he might just decide to go anyway next year. I guess there's still that

Uncertainty. Yeah, yeah. But I think, you know, it gives extra certainty now and you can maybe deal with the uncertainty of him leaving before. Yeah. And he's never broken a contract, but... No. You know, he's also done a lot of things that nobody else has done in football, so things are there to be broken. But I don't think anyone would say, oh, you stayed 10 years, you've been unloyal by not staying for 11. But as far as things go, you know, I got asked...

The other day, this is definitely his last contract that's changed. And the only answer you can give is I don't know because he didn't think he'd last beyond three or beyond anything like that. He says every time he signs the deal, it's his last one. And he's still here after 11. And he's still here despite the fact that his biggest asset in the game, Cheeky Begiristan, is leaving at the end of the summer. So he's stepping into sort of the post-Begiristan era, I guess.

which, you know, not necessarily people thought he would do? No, I think, you know, I wrote a piece today saying that this is probably the easiest time for him to walk away. For him, in that, like you said, cheeky to go and he's been so important to his career. The squad clearly needs some rebuilding. There's a lot of players over 30.

And there's obviously the uncertainty over charges. I know that City are adamant they'll be innocent. Pep believes that. But while this trial still goes on, there is uncertainty. It was very easy for Pep to look at all of that and say, I'm going. But he came to the opposite decision. And listening to him talk in his club interview last night, in the press conference today,

part of you wonders and i'll put you do you think you might make a different decision if city have been cleared and if they were five points clear at the top of the league and cruising to a fifth successive title do you think he might have thought he might come to a different decision it almost feels like he's yeah his loyalty to the club is a bigger influence here than maybe what he wants to do yeah yeah quite possibly um and i mean i've written this

if not before. But this season, I know they've lost four games in a row, which is nothing really in the grand scale of things. They're still very well placed. But this season have begun to seem a bit like a last dance, not just for him, but for the whole team. In summer, he went out of his way to keep Edison. And last year, they went out of their way to keep Kyle Walker. And all of the players that have had so much success with him are still...

there, which is great and they're amazing players. But, you know, bringing Gundogan back in summer was a coup. It was amazing. Gundogan has not been good this season. He's been part of a problem that is their midfield that looks old and tired and keeps getting ploughed through. And they've had loads of injuries which have exacerbated what is deliberately a small squad. But the season had started to look like the end of the road for a sizable chunk of the squad. Yeah.

and not just Pep. And so if Pep walks away, then it's kind of like, how good is your legacy? If you leave behind ruins, you know, I mean, Sir Alex Ferguson did it at United and,

is more revered as the best manager in the world. There's probably two kind of comparisons to what you're saying there. The Ferguson one, where essentially only Ferguson could have won the league with that squad and left a poor squad. Or you look at Klopp and I guess he walked away at a fairly decent time because that squad had kind of been regenerated and was young. And you look at how slots started and I guess that's what

Guardiola probably wants, doesn't he? He wants to hand over a squad that's in a better position than maybe this one at the moment where you look and think we might need a place in every position. Yeah, and that's it. People who sort of know him well think that he wants to rebuild the squad and he wants to leave the squad in a better state than it is now because there's every chance that this team could win the league because they're in a really good position to win the league. But if they do win the league, that doesn't necessarily mean that they...

are in a good position for the next few years. And he spoke in his club interview on Thursday night and he sort of said, you know, we might not win any more trophies this year. He's counting the Community Shield. But he said that's not the problem. The problem is what's next and what happens in the future. And that is, I think, what has played a big part in keeping him. Yeah. And, I mean, it does feel incredible at times that he is still here, doesn't it? I mean, you know, you say you asked before, is this his last contract? I mean, who knows anymore?

there's almost there's a lot made of like when he signed that contract when it came out this week that it was going to happen you see all the celebration on social media the city fans so happy that he's staying but you don't really talk about how much Pep needs the job in a way and I think there's a big element of that that he needs this job and you think back to I think it was May 2018 when he signed his first contract extension and we were like oh that's a surprise he's going to stay a bit longer and now there's been three more since then and

As much as he might be tempted to walk away, it does feel like there's a bit of him that just... He's got things so good here. The club has become so ingrained on his soul that it's quite hard for him to walk away. But also, he has surprised himself. Someone asked me, is he staying because of ego? Does he want to wreck up loads of records and...

sort of get closer to Ferguson in total titles and whatever. Maybe there's a bit of it at that, but genuinely the guy just loves being a manager. And I don't think he thought, I think he thought at this point in his career, he might have had three or five years at City, maybe another team, international job, and you're done. And you're playing golf. And I think he has been surprised by the amount that he still loves and needs the game and needs that sort of

intensity and feeling of winning. You know, it felt quite...

Well, it was very significant when City went to Sporting with United's new coach, Ruben Amorim, and got battered 4-1. And there'll be all kinds of things said about how Ruben Amorim's the next big thing. Pep will love nothing more than welcoming Amorim to the Etihad in a few weeks' time and absolutely battering United. And suddenly Pep's king again. And this is it. Every time you wait for him to go away, it's like, oh, by the way, he's signed another two years and he's going to win the league in those two years. Good luck when he's...

leaving because he's never leaving you know Trump might be in his fourth term by the time it's it's mad it does feel like he could stay for well I mean who knows how long now you know we started this podcast by speculating that he signed a two-year deal maybe he'll only do one but maybe he'll just sign again because he does seem to like you say he loves he loves the job and but but like you say this is the best place for him to manage like he could have

there will be other offers and there have been other offers and maybe one of those will tempt him but if none of those offers are immediately available you kind of think

I still want to manage because I really love the feeling of being a manager. May as well stay here. It's hard to see any other club job tempting him, isn't it? Yeah. Like where else would he go? Almost impossible to see any other club job tempting him, I would say. And you look back to, you know, after four years at Barcelona, he looked frazzled. Yeah. Three years at Bayern Munich, he looked fed up with all the criticism he was getting from Bayern greats. Yeah. Here, there's been none of that. And like you say, I think he surprised himself at how long he can stay, but he has got the perfect conditions and that's kind of summed up and,

you know he revealed today in the first part of his press conference that it took them two hours to sign a new contract and this seems to be a pretty regular thing that when he decides it's done in no time yeah and that kind of shows that this this club has got the perfect staff for him he keeps going maybe that'll change a little bit but it's just got the perfect conditions for him hasn't it yeah and it's not ideal um from a business perspective

to allow such a key asset to run into the final 12 months of his deal but he's so key to them that they feel it's worth the exception and three times now they've been rewarded with the decision that they want in the November and it is worth saying as well from a position where they could have been losing the manager and the sporting director in the same summer

they've already replaced the sporting director and he's going to start working in January part-time and then full-time in July. And they're keeping their number one target as managers. So it's worked out very well. And that can't be a coincidence. Things must just be run really well. Yeah, they certainly give the impression of a club that is run incredibly well, don't they? Things operate very smoothly. Right.

round here, unlike some other clubs that they're pretty close to, shall we say. And I mean, what do we make of him in the press conference today? Obviously, we can only talk about the first section at the moment. The second is embargoed until Friday night for Saturday's papers. I would urge you to read the MEN and our website tomorrow because there was some very good stuff in that. But from the open section, he was pretty good. Pretty good as well, I would say. And some reasonably interesting stuff on the two hours and the charge he's got, I mentioned in both sections. But talking about how

it just didn't it didn't impact his decision and he kind of said i said all this six months ago that whatever happens if they get relegated i'm here if we go to the conference i'm here and that that again kind of shows his his loyalty to to this club and the people who've made life so easy for him at this club doesn't it yeah and the thing is with the charge is like it doesn't necessarily make a difference because like it's not going to influence the hearing but like loads of people have made

a lot out of the fact that like oh the kit man's left so he must be guilty oh the dog's been shot so he must be guilty and it's I just made up the dog shot I panicked for another reference I was wondering which dog it was no animals have been harmed but

But it makes a difference because it means that Pep is the guy who's going to get these questions until it's over. And then when it's over and when there are the consequences that come from that, whatever they may be, Pep will be the guy in charge. And like you said, it's another reason why I could have just said, you know what? It has nothing to do with me. I can wash my hands of it and walk away. But he's...

chosen to stay as the club's spokesperson at what will be one of the sort of biggest moments in the club's lifetime, this battle against the Premier League. And that commitment shows how much he wants to stay. Yeah, definitely. And I think, you know, when we're trying to... When there's no kind of talk either way about his contract and what he's going to do, we're always trying to second guess what might happen. I think when the charges came out,

When you're talking here at press conferences and games, a lot of us probably thought you can see him going at a time before the decision is made here purely because why would he... You look at it and you think, why would he want to stay to deal with whatever the fallout may be? If they are found guilty, does he want to be the front man? Because...

you know they're not going to put caldoon up in a press conference they might do a club interview with him they're not going to put farron up it's going to be pep yeah and he's going to be the one dealing with those questions when if you know if the worst happens and they're found guilty that first fight day press conference every man and his dog's going to be here there's going to be sports news acts who haven't been here for you for years yeah who come here and fire questions at pep that he doesn't deserve to answer in a way so but he kind of confound us without thinking doesn't he we're thinking right well i'm going to stay i'm going to represent

my club and you've got to say fair play to him for that it kind of shows what this place means to him that it is see it into his soul in a way it does because i think what a lot of people from outside will fail to understand is that connection just like why why would you bother because as well he doesn't support city like he's a barcelona his blood is barcelona he's never shied away from that

So why? Why would he stay and defend the club? Why, if they're guilty of the most serious crimes, which I don't think they will be done for, but say they are, why would one of the best managers in the history of world football even talk about going down to the conference with them and managing them when they're in the conference? Why would he do it? But he's done it, and he's said it before, because...

you know, his belief is genuine and he's a fighter and he, you know, he fights for what he believes in and what he believes is that is what he's been told by people at the club and his bosses that City are innocent of all the things they've been accused of. So he doesn't like injustice and, you know, City are fighting against the Premier League and he's happy to be their spokesperson because of everything that they've given him.

Yeah. And let's presume then that what he's told comes to pass, that they're not guilty of the most serious charges, maybe all the charges that they carry on, whatever happens in the league happens this season. And there's probably another time for a podcast looking at the bigger picture and the bigger challenges ahead.

But the most immediate one is that squad. I think it's fair to say that this is a squad with an ageing profile. It's almost a squad with kind of a two tier profile. There's not very many players in that maybe 26 to 28, 29, 25 to 29 bracket where you'd say they're at the prime. There's a lot of young players now and a lot of old players now, I would say. There's not many that you'd think and players' primes are different these days. You know, you look at...

I guess Salah at Liverpool is the prime example this season, who's still doing incredible things. You look at Casemiro at United, they're pretty much the same age, and he's going in a very different direction. You look at De Bruyne this season, it looks like age has caught up with him very quickly. But there's others that you could go on for a long time. But it does feel like it's a squad that needs a bit of a refresh, probably more of a refresh than it's had in recent years. Yeah, it does. But then at the same time, De Bruyne...

like it felt last season like De Bruyne wasn't the same but the numbers he produced when he came back were phenomenal and like I wouldn't say his performances were that great last season but his numbers were and this season he started really well and sort of looked pretty good and then we just haven't seen him for about 8 weeks from what was a nothing situation and you can sense Guardiola's frustration and as time's gone on he's been like well he's 33 he's not 23 so his body can't take it and you're like well

Right, well, his age is a problem then. Yeah. And that thing, you know, like I was saying about the last dance, there's a lot of players who have struggled this season. And I think with midfield, like when City were sort of in their tussles with Liverpool, the reason it's so one-sided on the trophy side is because City's midfield was just the best. And they have successfully...

to evolve the midfield. But with Rodri out, like Gundogan and Kovacic both in their 30s and, you know, De Bruyne when he would play would be in his 30s. It's sometimes about how a team looks and...

Because a team with three 20-year-olds in midfield could get bypassed, but when City's midfield gets bypassed, when Elkay Gundogan's getting bypassed when he wasn't, you sort of think, well, what has changed? And he's not turned into a terrible player overnight, so something's not quite right and he's at the wrong...

age to be turning those things round. So maybe he'll confound everyone and play brilliantly again. But when you're looking at those things, you think, yeah, if your midfield's shot, you've got a problem. And again, they've not got Rodri for the season through no fault of their own and he would make a big difference. But they've not got Rodri, so they need to do something about it. And when Liverpool did beat them to the title,

they then fell apart because they didn't get the midfield restructure. Their midfield refresh didn't work properly. So they had to, you know, they weren't as competitive as they would like and City are now in a position where they're having less control of games because their midfield is shot. Yeah, yeah, definitely.

different and you're right that it is it is a perception thing as well that it's become a talking point because they're losing games you can easily imagine City responding winning the title and suddenly there's a lot less talk about their 30 something players yeah if they do go on like it feels a long time ago that like I think they won six and drew one of the first seven games without Rodri yeah it was like oh who needs who needs Rodri after all and now it's like oh yeah

that these things add up and injuries make it all worse. Yeah, they do, absolutely. I remember the first day of the season when they won at Chelsea without Rodri and writing a piece and asking Pep about how big a statement was this to win it at top 16 without Rodri. Yeah. He kind of agreed on the premise of it and said it would give the players a lot of confidence and now here we are in November, he's out for the season and we are talking about how much they miss him and how much they're going to miss him. So,

does show how quickly things can change. Right, that's all for the first part of this podcast. We're back after the break to look ahead to the Tottenham game. We have one more act for you this evening. I don't even need to say his name. Mr. Bob Dylan! A complete unknown is now a Golden Globe and Critics' Choice nominee for Best Picture. Bobby, what do you want to be? Whatever it is, they don't want me to be. Timothy Chalamet astonishes as Bob Dylan in one of the best performances of the year. Dude,

And critics rave. Edward Norton is absolutely fantastic. 70,000 people are here and Bobby is the reason for it. This Christmas. They just want me singing Blowing in the Wind for the rest of my life. Don't miss the movie critics are hailing. Five stars. To the audience!

It's pure cinematic magic. Turn it down! Play it loud! And named to AFI and the National Board of Review's Top Ten Films of the Year. Make some noise, BD. Track some mud on the carpet. A Complete Unknown. Only in theaters Christmas Day. Rated R. Under $17.99 without parent.

This episode is brought to you by Allstate. Some people just know they could save hundreds on car insurance by checking Allstate first. Like you know to check the date of the big game first,

before you accidentally buy tickets on your 20th wedding anniversary and have to spend the next 20 years of your marriage making up for it. Yeah, checking first is smart. So check Allstate first for a quote that could save you hundreds. You're in good hands with Allstate. Savings vary. Terms apply. Allstate Fire and Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates. Northbrook, Illinois.

This episode is brought to you by AWS. Amazon Q Business is the new generative AI assistant from AWS. Many tasks can make business slow, like wading through mud. Help! Luckily, there's a faster, easier, less messy choice. Amazon Q can securely understand your business data to help you streamline tasks, like summarizing quarterly results or doing complex analyses in no time. Q got this. Learn what Amazon Q Business can do for you at aws.com slash learn more.

Welcome back to the Talking City podcast. We finished the first half talking about the midfield and a squad rebuild and the midfield is going to be a subject again tomorrow or today if you listen to this on Saturday because Mateo Kovacic is out. Somewhat ironically, I guess, on the day that Rodri is going to return to the Etihad and show off his ballon d'or. But yeah, another midfielder out injured.

One-off, perhaps the most obvious, the most key replacement for Rodri. I know it's not been like for like, and Pep's done a few different things to try and compensate for that absence. But with Kovacic, he thinks three weeks to a month injured on international duty. Without Rodri, without Kovacic, that's a major blow, isn't it? And it's going to be fascinating to see how...

Pep tries to get away from this? Because we've spoken in the past about, you know, Gundogan played that holding role brilliantly when they won those final 14 games to hold off Liverpool all those years ago. Now, it doesn't feel like Gundogan's that player anymore at the moment. I mean, what are they going to do without Kovacic? How are they going to, how's Pep going to solve that conundrum? Well,

He's going to have to do something new. It's obviously not good that Kovacic is injured and will add to their injury problems. But it feels like one of the biggest problems in the midfield has been playing both Kovacic and Gundogan because Kovacic is not as mobile as Rodri. And if you're playing another player, if you hold the midfield, it isn't as mobile. And then you've got Gundogan as well, who hasn't been at the level that he was at. It's kind of like half your midfield is...

is gone yeah um so without coverage it might be going to win as a six with Lewis or Stones pushing forward alongside him or Guardiola or Lewis pushing past to be in the eight or stones um but it's gonna have to be something new and it might not be perfect but there's a good chance that there will be more energy from that now whether you need that against Spurs

is a matter for debate because Spurs are one of the better teams at sort of countering and playing a basketball game. But Guardiola can't rely on Kovacic and Gundogan in the same team for the next three weeks to a month. So we're going to have to see something different. And I think a lot of fans, while not wishing injury on anyone, will be open to the idea of something new. See a different solution. Yeah. Yeah, it'll be intriguing to see.

What that is. And, I mean, when I arrived here earlier today, I didn't expect to be talking about Max Allain, to be honest. But these press conferences can always throw up a curveball. He's also out. Yeah. More of an issue for the other 21s in the first team, you would say. Interesting that...

that Guardiola raised him. He would never have normally raised him when he's asked about team news and injury news, but he clearly wanted to get points across and an international break that he started by getting annoyed by England. He has finished by getting annoyed by England as well and basically blaming them for Max Lille picking up an injury, suggesting a lack of communication between the doctors. It sounds like he trained with England under-20s and under-21s on the same day and it is

it is fair to say that he is not happy when he when he brought his name up and mentioned him in the press conference by the end there was quite a few national journalists asking us who did he say yeah he said yeah um it was clear that he he wanted to make a point there didn't he and rightly so what it sounds like yeah yeah but i mean max lane talented young centre-back coming through the academy to the point where you know i think there was a bit of surprise that it was um simpson pussy who

But he did get the nod ahead of him. So, like, Guardiola's basically bringing up a centre-back who has not been part of his centre-back plans when he's had no centre-backs. He's had zero fit centre-backs and he's still not turned to this lad, which is understandable. But then, you know, to make a big deal, like you say, felt like it was very pointed towards...

uh the FA and we've had the greelish thing on Walker and stones last season um yeah they don't feel like there's much love between no Guardiola and the England medical staff no it seems that way they're adding the FA to their list of grievances alongside the Premier League at war with all the authorities at the moment it seems but yeah something that the pepper is clearly very very annoyed about um

And at least there's some good news on the injury front. Three of the centre-backs back in training, John Stones, Manuel Akanji and Nathan Ake, have all trained. Ruben Diaz hasn't, but he says not far away. I mean, of the three that have trained, I think Pep said he's not sure if any of them have got 90 minutes in them, but do we expect at least one or two to start against Tottenham this weekend? You'd think so. You'd think so. I think you would have...

Lewis and Guardiola and then two from the three and maybe bring one of the other ones on. Yeah, we've sort of seen Grealish back in training as well. It feels like a few people are starting to come back and the squad's beginning to look a bit healthier. But it's keeping it that way, I suppose. Yes, it is. You can often see these, when you have a season like this with injuries, it's

just happens where it never stops and you almost never get a breather. And there was, there's a degree of that in, in the Kovacic thing, wasn't there? I think, I think the first question he was asked about team news was, has everyone come back from the internationals? Okay. And it was no. Yeah. So, you know, you kind of get that point sometimes where you just think luck's against you and things are going wrong. But,

Like we said, there are some players returning. I think in the pictures they put out on Wednesday night from training, Foden and Nunes were both pictured. And I know they both played 90 minutes at Brighton, but they did pull out of their international squads as well. So they were obviously only minor issues or being protective with issues they may have. So the fact they both trained is good.

And it kind of got forgotten today, mostly, that City were actually going into this game on a losing run that is unprecedented. I mean, it's unprecedented for Guardiola. It's a very long time since City have lost four in a row. But because of that new contract, the mood was upbeat. I think Guardiola mentioned four in a row defeats more than it was maybe put to him. Yeah. But it still feels like, amid all the euphoria, the, yes, he's staying, it

it still feels like a big game fairly early in the season, doesn't it? And obviously it's Liverpool away next week. It kind of feels like they need a result now just to stop. I don't want to say stop the rot. That's probably the wrong word. But to kind of just steady the ship to get back on track. Yeah, I didn't mind rot, but I'll take the ship. Yeah, I think the Guardiola contract has changed the mood at the club and...

With the fans on Saturday, I think it will be big now against Spurs and, you know, it will be hugely positive and they will look to kind of roll City on to back to winning ways, really. So, again, kind of great timing from Guardiola's perspective. You know, the latest City documentary is out on last season and is, like, based on leadership and,

inspiration and it's basically the pep show like however good all these players are it's just about pep and about how pep motivates them and again and again and again and this kind of feels like another time where pep stepped in and said yeah um let's announce this yeah and let's change the mood music around the club a bit and see how see how we go and yeah it is big with tottenham liverpool

who are no mugs this season, and then the derby in three weeks, I think. So some tough fixtures coming up, Tripti events in there as well, and City need to get better results than they have done because they're still in a decent position because they started the season so well in terms of results, but they can't rely on that forever. And if they drop more points before meeting Liverpool and drop points at Liverpool, you very quickly...

in a position where you're kind of losing the league and no longer in a position to win it. So they do need to just start winning again. Yeah, definitely. It does almost feel as well like they're due to smash someone, aren't they? Let's be honest, it feels like giving someone a good hiding is well overdue. Even the runs, the games before this losing run, you think back to Brentford and Fulham and Southampton, they were winning games that you look at and think, oh yeah, City are going to win that.

4-0 and they were edging them. They were and they weren't playing well but almost more concerning was like Sporting they played the best 45 in ages and still got battered. Brighton they played really well first half lost the game. They almost need to be 3-0 up at half time don't they? Yeah yeah but you know one of those four defeats was at Spurs where Spurs went 2-0 up against them in the League Cup and conceded on the stroke of half time and booed the team off. That's how sort of

volatile Spurs is and still hasn't got any any left just Spurs like just as you think they're getting somewhere yeah they go and lose at home to Ipswich or something like that and there's a you know a growing um criticism of Poster Coghlan isn't there for whether that's valid or not so um it's Spurs are not it's probably a good time to play Spurs because

they are not in a great place right now. They need a win, but they're also...

a bit delicate in a way that City have been. Yeah, I mean, I would almost say with Spurs that it is almost irrelevant whether there's a good time or bad time to play them because they are so unpredictable. I mean, you look, I think this season they've beaten City, albeit the League Cup, they've won away at United, they've thrashed Villa, they've thrown away a 2-0 lead to Brighton and they've given Ipswich and Crystal Palace their only Premier League wins of the season. They are so unpredictable and in a way they're kind of a

a weird or a dangerous team for City to play this weekend? Because like I say, it does feel like with this news now, City are due to...

kind of to give someone a good hiding like I say to get that mojo back for Harlem to bang in a hat trick to take all those first half chances and be outside yeah but with Tottenham you just don't know so often these games with Tottenham are are wild so often Tottenham get something against City when they don't really deserve it yeah um and you just don't know what you're going to get and in a way City's midfield issues might play into Tottenham's hands because Tottenham can just

carved through a midfield, can't they, at times? Yeah, yeah, yeah. It feels like it's a really fascinating game. I think that's that 3-3 last season with the whistle blown too early, the very last kick, and then at White Hart Lane, not White Hart Lane, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,

Ortega's saved from Son. They're always eventful City games. They are. They're always worth watching, aren't they? Yeah. And I'm sure tomorrow's will be no different, especially with the Guardiola news. Rodri, due to parade, you parade at Ballon d'Or, I guess you do, due to parade at Ballon d'Or at 5.15. So make sure you're in the stadium early if you're going. Rodri's actually been back at the training ground today seeing some of his old teammates. First time he's been back since...

since his injury and since surgery I think perhaps that he's due to return full-time in in January and

continue his rehab but unfortunately he won't be available for tomorrow and neither will Kovacic so we'll see something different in midfield but that's all for now we'll be back on Monday to look back at that Tottenham game and look ahead to Feyenoord and another big week early in City season remember to subscribe to get that on your podcast feed give us a like leave us a five-star review tell us how much you've enjoyed this in-person podcast and we'll be back with you very soon thanks for listening