‘Goal-shy? We have been scoring for fun’
WALKER DENIES BLUES HAVE HAD PROBLEM FINDING BACK OF THE NET
KYLE Walker denies that City have a goalscoring problem despite firing six blanks already this season.
Those six clean sheets at the wrong end are as many as Blues had in the entirety of last season, and every time they fail to score, the spectre of their failure to replace Sergio Aguero in the summer can be felt.
Manager Pep Guardiola has already resigned himself to questions about not having a striker when the Blues don’t win, even though they effectively won the Premier League and reached the Champions League final without one last season.
But Walker denied there is any problem, and proffered the evidence of five-goal tallies against Arsenal and Club Brugge – who the Blues face in the return at the Etihad Stadium tonight – among others. City’s problem has been that they have had either famine or feast, scoring a bucketful in one game, but in tighter games against better-organised opposition often struggling to create and finish chances.
Walker denied there is an issue: “I wouldn’t say we have lacked in goals because there have been a number of games where we have put in five,” he said.
“It is like, ‘Ok, Man City score, they don’t need a striker’ but when we don’t score, it is like ‘You need a striker.’
“We are a team, built on foundations. We lost Kun who was the poster boy for the club but apart from that everyone is on a level playing field. We all work hard for each other, not three or four superstars.”
Perhaps more pressing Walker was the assertion by Guardiola that he was not happy with some of the defending in the first game against the Belgian side, although he was talking about the press from the whole team rather than any issues with the back four.
The manager has been watching the video of the 5-1 win three weeks ago and said there were aspects with which he was unhappy.
Said Walker: “It is difficult because I think last season we were rock solid, the arrival of Ruben (Dias) was key in shutting up shop and making sure we had a platform.
“But then I look at it and it is not just the goalkeeper and back four, we defend as a collective and attack as a collective.
“I don’t think we can just pinpoint ourselves as defenders. Maybe the boss is not happy with the press, we will have to wait for today’s training session and find out.
“He has probably been doing his homework after the schedule we had after West Ham and Crystal Palace and has picked up on something that is going to help the team.”
We lost Kun, who was the poster boy for the club, but apart from that everyone is on a level playing field
Kyle Walker