CITY Pep still rates rotation as his basic strategy
MANAGER WILL SWAP TEAM AROUND DESPITE SHOCK DEFEAT TO PALACE
CITY’S shock Premier League defeat to Crystal Palace hasn’t forced Pep Guardiola to abandon plans to rotate his squad.
Kevin De Bruyne and Sergio Aguero both came through 70 minutes of the Carabao Cup success at Leicester City in midweek, but Guardiola decided to take the cautious route with both and they were back on the bench against the Eagles.
Aguero came on five minutes into the second half and De Bruyne was introduced just after the hour mark but they were powerless to stop City falling to a 3-2 defeat which leaves them four points adrift of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League.
Guardiola said both De Bruyne and Aguero need more time to get up to speed after injury lay-offs and the City boss promised to keep making changes to his side.
The games are coming thick and fast for City now, with a Premier League trip to Leicester City on Boxing Day and then Southampton on December 30, before a crunch top of the table meeting with Liverpool at the Etihad on January 3.
Asked about the decision to only put De Bruyne on the bench, Guardiola said: “Of course he could play, so I decide to play the other ones. “Gabriel scored two goals in the last game here v Everton. Sergio need more time to get rhythm. Kevin was first two or three months and then injured. “His condition is better. “We put six or seven players with fresh legs. That is going to happen in the future. When you have a lot of games, everyone has to play.” Guardiola heaped praise on Palace after their shock win and compared the defeat to City’s only other Premier League reverse this season, at Chelsea earlier this month. “The guys who played did absolutely everything,” he said. “Today what happened was quite similar, don’t want to attack, long balls. The first time goal, the second time goal. When that happens wow. “In football this kind of situation happens. It was quite similar in Stamford Bridge. They arrived two times. They didn’t have one more shot on target. “Defensively they were brilliant. I give a lot of credit to Crystal Palace. “The teams are good, the quality. We have to improve on that. We have to create more chances to score goals.” Pep Guardiola