City are ready to ring the changes
REPORTS GAEL CLICHY has attempted to take the heat off Pep Guardiola for Manchester City’s shock Champions League demise.
The City defender admits the players ignored their manager’s instructions in the first half of the defeat by Monaco.
Now some could pay by seeing their careers at the Etihad Stadium brought to an abrupt end.
Seven players – including Clichy – are out of contract at the end of the season and none will be confident of landing extensions, with the manner of Wednesday’s loss confirming Guardiola’s private belief that his squad needs a drastic overhaul.
Guardiola has been criticised for his attackminded team selection this week, dropping experienced midfielder Yaya Toure to the bench, leaving fit-again captain Vincent Kompany out of his squad and picking error-prone Aleksander Kolarov as a centre-back.
But former Arsenal and France star Clichy insists it would have been a different outcome if the players had carried out the Spaniard’s game plan.
“We have to take responsibility,” said Clichy. “We are very disappointed, especially with the first half.
“It was not the way the manager wants us to play. He never told us to play so deep. When we play the way the manager wants us to play, we can create problems for any team.
“Since he took over, his philosophy is to go forward, to press the team we’re playing, to win the ball high up the field and then pass to a player who can be creative and make something happen – and we didn’t do it.
“The first part of the game set the momentum and it was not for us. We tried to react but they have quality.
“We didn’t really create any chances. We dropped off, we didn’t press and he doesn’t like that, so his message at half-time was, ‘If you have to go out of this competition, at least go out playing the way I want you to play’.
“We did well in the second half, we pressed high, but we didn’t take our chances. Maybe we could have taken control of the game if we’d taken those.”
Clichy expects Guardiola to make new signings this longest-serving player, has been plagued by injuries for the past two seasons but is understood to have been back in training for several weeks.
Some senior club officials were bewildered Kompany’s experience was not utilised on Wednesday when City, defending a 5-3 lead from the first leg, lost 3-1 and went out on away goals after a 6-6 aggregate draw.
Guardiola no longer trusts Kompany to stay fit and wants to rebuild his defence by buying a goalkeeper, two fullbacks, a centre-half and a defensive midfielder.
He may also target Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez – who he signed when Barcelona boss – if Sergio Aguero is not satisfied with the assurances he wants when he meets Guardiola for talks at the end of the season.
City are ready to spend £200million this summer to assemble a squad capable of winning the Champions League and Premier League. Kompany is one of 16 players whose future are uncertain.
Seven are out of contract this summer – Yaya Toure, Pablo Zabaleta, Bacary Sagna, Gael Clichy, Jesus Navas, Willy Caballero and highly-rated youngster Tosin Adarabioyo – and have yet to be offered new deals.
Apart from top scorer Aguero, the futures of Aleksandar Kolarov and Fabian Delph are also under scrutiny.
And Guardiola will attempt to recoup some of his huge outlay by selling five players who are out on loan this season – Joe Hart, Samir Nasri, Wilfried Bony, Eliaquim Mangala and Jason Denayer.
His targets include Bayern Munich defender Joshua Kimmich, Southampton’s Virgil van Dijk, Athletic Bilbao’s Aymeric Laporte and a trio of players who have been highly impressive for Monaco this season – Fabinho, Djibril Sidibe and Benjamin Mendy.