Clash will give Pep chance to test kids
TRIAL RUN It may not be as keenly fought a contest as some of their recent games but there will still be merit in Manchester City’s game with Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp’s side are further along with their pre-season plans and have more senior players available for the game, giving Pep Guardiola the chance to test some of his youngsters out, with squad places up for grabs. It’s nice for the young players,” said Guardiola. “We are going to play one of the best teams in Europe that are fighting for the Champions League. “To play against [Sadio] Mane, [Mo] Salah, [Virgil] Van Dijk and [James] Milner in front of Jurgen Klopp will be a huge experience to realise the level they have to take to compete in the high level. For all of them, it will be a huge experience and we will practice to see how the young players react under pressure in important games.”
CENTRAL MIDFIELD QUESTION There is a decision to be made on whether Douglas Luiz is good enough to be part of the first team squad for next season to help fill the Jorginho void, and the same goes for Claudio Gomes. Guardiola brought Gomes’s name up of his own accord in a press conference before City had even confirmed his signing - very much an exception - to point out what an exciting prospect he is. Which one starts against Liverpool should give an indication as to who is ahead in the manager’s plans, with both needing to play regular football this season.
LIVERPOOL PROBLEM Liverpool won three of four meetings with City last season, becoming the first team to beat them in a Premier League game and knocking them out of the Champions League to continue Klopp’s excellent record against Guardiola. Any opportunity to see them at close quarters could be invaluable to getting the better of the Merseysiders next year, important considering they are expected to challenge strongly for the title. ■BERNARDO BACK Bernardo Silva jetted into New York on Sunday night and he should expect to feature at some point even if he is unlikely to start. Guardiola needs as many players as possible to fill out his squad for the start of the Premier League and the Portugal international was put straight into training on Monday morning. After a year of growing into the City team, can Bernardo kick on this year and unleash his potential?