Kevin has no time for instant karma as City go for record
KEVIN DE BRUYNE does not view Paul Pogba’s absence from this Sunday’s Manchester derby as some sort of karma.
Pogba joked in a television interview at the weekend he hoped some Manchester City stars would be injured for the showdown between the Premier League’s top two teams.
As it turned out, it is Pogba who will miss the game after his red card for United at the Emirates. But De Bruyne is so confident about all-conquering City’s form he would prefer it if the France midfielder was in action in the Old Trafford showdown.
He said: “I don’t believe in that stuff. I’m a very straightforward guy. If someone believes it is karma then OK. Everyone has a right to their opinion. I don’t care – he can say whatever he wants. I don’t want anyone to get injured. You want to play against the best teams and the best players.
“Paul’s a massive player. I know him a little bit. He’s unbelievable. But he took a red card and that’s the way it goes. You have injuries and suspensions. We just have to be focused on whatever we’re doing.”
Pogba’s absence may force Jose Mourinho into a tactical
rethink but De Bruyne says nothing will ever change Pep Guardiola’s ‘total football’ philosophy.
It is an approach that has brought City a remarkable 20 wins on the bounce in all competitions, including 13 in the Premier League. Another win on Sunday will equal the all-time record for top flight consecutive wins.
“We’ll play the same there,” said De Bruyne. “We never change. We try to do the things we are good at. That gives us the best chance to win. We try to play our style, put them under pressure and see where it goes from there.
“Hopefully, we can win the game, it would be massive. But it’s not always about winning or losing – it’s about playing the same way we always do and giving our all. So far, it’s worked out.”
City are breaking all sorts of records but De Bruyne says it will mean nothing if they do not end up with the Premier League title.
“If we don’t win anything at the end of the season, are you going to be talking about the 20 wins we have now?” he asked.
“It’s phenomenal but obviously we want to win the title in the end. The winning run gives us a good advantage for the moment but we’ve a big week with United, then Swansea and Tottenham. “If you lose two games out of three and they win their three games, they are there. “It goes up and down in football and at the moment we are on an up.” De Bruyne, who has a Euro suspension, will be left behind along with several other first-choice stars when Guardiola’s squad fly to Ukraine today for tomorrow’s Champions League ‘dead rubber’ against Shakthar Donetsk.
Meanwhile Guardiola, left, will face no punishment over his heated post-match words with Southampton’s Nathan Redmond last week. The FA have accepted the Spaniard’s explanation but reminded him of his responsibilities.