Fear Factor
Jesus and Sergio ‘can terrify Jose’ city
PEP Guardiola can scare the life out of United … by playing Sergio Aguero AND Gabriel Jesus together.
Jesus is battling to be fit for tomorrow’s derby after three months out with a broken metatarsal, while Aguero is winning his fight to recover from a knock he sustained in the FA Cup semi-final at the weekend.
But if both are fit, City legend Paul Dickov believes it is a combination which would terrorise defences.
“Pep did say they can both play in the same team – Jesus has played in a withdrawn role, as a No. 10 for Brazil, and has played wide previously,” said the Scotland international.
“So it wouldn’t surprise me if they found a way because they are two top-class players, and you want to keep your best players.
“It would scare a few people seeing Aguero and Jesus on the teamsheet.”
Aguero has again been ignored by most this season, even though he hit the 30-goal mark for the fourth time in his City career with his goal against Arsenal at Wembley on Sunday.
That made him joint second top scorer in the club’s history with Tommy Johnson on 166 – and means he has scored more than any other Premier League player in all competitions.
And Dickov feels that Guardiola has added another dimension to Kun’s game.
“You have Neymar, Messi, Ronaldo and Bale, and I don’t put Sergio far behind them,” he said. “As a centre forward, he’s one of the best, if not the best.
“But Gabriel Jesus has come in and shown what a good player he is at such a young age. He has shown unbelievable maturity in the games he has played,when you take in all the factors – his age, the fact he has come from Brazil, will he settle.
“He has hit the ground running and is a talented boy, and you can see why Pep signed him.
“He is a Pep centre forward, first and foremost.
“And the flip side of that is since Sergio came back in the team he has started doing that more and more, and scoring goals for fun.
“The amount he has scored seems to go under the radar. People talk about how many Harry Kane, Diego Costa and Romelu Lukaku have scored, but no-one mentions Aguero has topped them all with 30 goals, which is unbelievable, especially in the Premier League these days.”
Guardiola demanded more from Aguero earlier in the season, and then gave him another kick by replacing him in the team with Jesus after his £27m move from Palmeiras in January.
Every player has that moment when a younger face arrives to challenge for your place, and Dickov is full of praise for how Kun has responded.
“It’s all about how you react to it, and since the turn of the year, you look at the Dmitri Payet situation, and Diego Costa, players who spat the dummy out and tried to get a move because they weren’t in the team or weren’t happy,” he said.
“Sergio got his head down and waited for his chance. He andled it unbelievably professionally, and that shows he is a class man as well as a class player. “He didn’t sit there and moan, or say he was unhappy, he just waited because he knew he would get his chance again.” He has started to be more involved in the build-up play, and his running stats have improved enormously this season. “He has always been the main part of the team with David Silva, Kevin de Bruyne and other players previous to that providing the ammunition, so he has never had to do that,” said Dickov. “It’s not that he can’t do it – he was just never asked. Certainly since he was left out and come back in, he has shown another side to his game. Paul Dickov starred in Betsafe’s five-a-side derby clash between City and United legends. See it by logging on to betsafe.com
It would scare a few people seeing Aguero and Jesus on the teamsheet Paul Dickov