Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
PUEL FUMES: CITY HAVE NO RESPECT
BY JAMES NURSEY
CLAUDE PUEL has accused Manchester City of lacking “respect” over their pursuit of Riyad Mahrez.
The Premier League leaders waited until 48 hours before the close of last month’s transfer window to make their move for one of the Foxes’ most important players. Mahrez went
GABRIEL JESUS has sought advice from Brazil legend Ronaldo in his fightback from injury to help boost Manchester City’s Quadruple bid.
Jesus, 20, has been out of action since suffering knee-ligament damage in the goalless draw away to Crystal Palace on New Year’s Eve.
The City striker had been expected to return within six weeks, but has yet to resume training and has turned to compatriot Ronaldo for help.
Ronaldo missed nearly three years due to serious knee injuries during his glittering playing career, which included spells at Barcelona, Inter, Real Madrid and AC Milan.
Jesus has been in contact with the 41-year-old and said: “Besides being a fan of him as a player, I had the pleasure of getting to know the person he is, which made me admire him even more.
“He’s conquered everything, but is still humble. I’m proud to be able to have his help and advice.”
Jesus had his leg brace removed two weeks ago, but his injury is more complex than first thought.
“I’m getting better every day and recovering,” said Jesus. “But I must recover well – not too fast.
“The knee is a very complicated part, even more so as I’ve never had an injury there. I need to take good care of myself.
“There were a lot of negative things in my head. When I felt the pain there, I tried to continue, but I couldn’t. That moment was complicated because I had thoughts about the national team, about the rest of the season – I thought of everything.
“I’m hitting the ball a little bit now – I missed that a lot – but I’m still a little scared. In a week, I’ll spend more days hitting the ball and, in a short time, I’ll train with the team again.”
His captain Vincent Kompany insists there will be no let-up from Manchester City in their pursuit of an unprecedented Quadruple.
They have a foot in the Champions League quarterfinals after their 4-0 win at Basel. Next they play
Wigan in the FA Cup, followed by the EFL Cup final against Arsenal.
“We wouldn’t be in four competitions if it wasn’t for so many players being able to perform at this level,” said Kompany (left, with Ilkay Gundogan), who made his first appearance in the Champions League for nearly two years.
“We’ve as much desire to play well against Wigan as we did against Basel. It will be the
same in the EFL Cup final.”