Pep: We have to control the match – then punish them!

PEP Guardiola wants his side to play their own game at Old Trafford as they go in search of a derby win to restore their status as top dogs in the city.

For the first time in his spell as Blues manager, they go into a derby behind United in the Premier League table, but that is a status that could be reversed if they claim success across town.

City struggled against the pace of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s United last season, but the only win in four meetings they did claim came at Old Trafford, in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg.

Other than that United posed City problems on the break, although Guardiola’s side have dealt much better with those kinds of threats this season.

And rather than worrying about what the Reds can do, he wants City to focus on their own game-plan to secure victory.

“Of course it’s difficult, like all the big clubs they have incredible, top players up front. We’ll try to play our game, to control them as much as possible and, yeah, to punish them,” said Guardiola.

“They know that we go to Old Trafford to try to win the game like we’ve always done.

“We know the quality they have. We cannot deny it.

“They have an exceptional squad, we know it, we knew when I was playing them with Barcelona in finals of the Champions League, I knew it then and I knew it when I just arrived [at City] when I faced other managers. Always they had incredible top teams.”

United are in the title race despite the inconsistencies they’ve suffered from this season which were again laid bare in midweek when they were beaten by RB Leipzig.

That defeat knocked United out of the Champions League at the group stage, but Guardiola is in no doubt how impressive the work Solskjaer has done at Old Trafford is i is. “For me he’s a an exceptional m manager. I cannot sa say much because I am not there in the th locker room but bu how he handled dl the team and how h he represents United U all around the th world,” said Guardiola. G

“I know, Ole knows, everyone knows it depends on results but I have a hih high opinion about his work at United.”

And Guardiola insists Solskjaer is strong enough to ride out the storm at United despite coming under increased pressure.

And he believes Solskjaer is the victim of the cycle of instant judgement in modern football, with his job the source of plenty of speculation.

But Guardiola insists that is part of the game now and that his counterpart across the city won’t be paying it too much attention.

“We know it, that’s why we get a

lot of salary!” joked Guardiola. “It is important to know the value of Solskjaer is there, there is no doubt about this.”

Guardiola believes the scrutiny on every manager comes with the territory now, something Solskjaer will be well aware of at Old Trafford.

He added: “I don’t have to give him support because he is strong enough and knows how this job works.

“When we win we are a genius and when we lose we have to be sacked.

“It happens at United and all the clubs around the world – this is the reality.”

United have been inconsistent this season and have won only once in the Premier League at Old Trafford, but Guardiola will prepare his City side to face the very best Solskjaer’s team has to offer.

“[We prepare] thinking we’re going to face the best version of them, especially talk a lot about what we have to do,” he said. “It’s not a knockout game, it is three more points – important of course because of the quality of the opponent but there are a lot of fixtures to come and we twwry to win our

City players during training yesterday ahead of the derby