At the moment, Pep Guardiola is on a tour of the United States with Manchester City. He wants to use this time to see how his Academy players are doing.
The English champions’ first traveling squad for the game against Celtic is mostly made up of young players, but there are also some known stars like Erling Haaland and Jack Grealish.
Before they play Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool, City are still just getting ready for the season. They have three games across the Atlantic Ocean against AC Milan, Barcelona, and Chelsea.
Guardiola’s main goals for this part of the tour are to make sure no one gets hurt and to see some up-and-coming players who might be able to make it into his first team.
Pep Guardiola on Celtic vs. Manchester City
In a news conference overnight [YouTube], Guardiola was asked what would make them successful against Celtic and on the rest of their trip to the US: “No harm done.” We could have a big win with that. No, we’re not here for the four prizes. We’re here to stay healthy and improve where we are. About 80% to 85% of the team is made up of young Academy players, which will be good for them.
“Of course, we get to play Celtic, which is a top team in Scotland.” Okay, let’s see Barcelona and Chelsea come next. It’s good for these guys to play against these teams and see how well they can do. It’s very important for them and for all of us.
“I need to see all of them.” I’m most interested in seeing James McAtee when he gets back from Sheffield. What I think of him is very good. I’d love to have him and keep him with us next season.
“He’s a unique person who can play in the pockets in space.” I think he grew up mentally and physically. When you play in the Premier League and are trying to stay up, you get something special.
Brendan Rodgers wants the same things for Celtic.
Rodgers brought a lot of young Academy players with him to the US, and he even started Colby Donovan and Matthew Anderson over the weekend.
To be sure, they’ll get more game time against City. However, Liverpool are a bit further along in their preparations, so a lot of regulars could also get minutes.
Rodgers and Guardiola both have the same goals to win. Get through the game without getting hurt, play well, and make pre-season more intense. He has made it clear that this trip to the US is all about getting his team physically ready for the first game of the season against Kilmarnock.
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