STOKE v MAN CITY CITY STICKLER Going Dutch made a man out of Zinch
Butland: Bring on Aguero & Co... I’m not haunted by hammering
JACK BUTLAND enjoys facing the Premier League’s deadliest strikeforce – despite having seven put past him last time out.
The England keeper has spoken with relish about the prospect of lining up against Sergio Aguero and Co tomorrow as the Potters go in search of three desperately-needed points.
Butland was between the sticks five months ago when Pep Guardiola’s side really hit their straps, running up a thumping 7-2 victory at the Etihad.
It might be normal for a goalkeeper to have reservations about suffering Groundhog Day. But if he has them, Stoke’s skipper hides them m well.
The champions- elect have already rattled in 83 goals ls – and are odds on to reach h the century from their r final nine games.
However, Butland said: “It’s really enjoyable facing them. It’s a big challenge.
“Despite the hammering we took at their place it t was that – a challenge.
“And I enjoy it. I like trying ying to stop them. They are an incredible side.
“We’ve been on the end of it once already this season – as have most of the Premier League.
“The difference with them is that they can hurt you from so many different areas. They can unlock your defence from anywhere. That’s hard enough. But they also score plenty of set-pieces.
“It’s a challenge to keep them at bay but we have to find ways of doing that.
“It’s not a good time to play Manchester City – not with the form they are in. But they have a busy schedule, they have already won one cup and they’ve got the Champions League. If there is any complacency then we have got to take advantage of that.” Stoke’s form has picked up since Paul Lambert was appointed. But three points can make a huge difference to any team in a relegation scrap.
Although draws at Leicester City and Southampton have proved there is fight in the Potters squad, Lambert only has one victory to his name, in his first match, against Huddersfield Town.
Butland added: “Our performances of late have been a lot better. We have given ourselves better opportunities to win games. We’ve stayed in games and dug out results we really needed.
“People were saying Southampton was a ‘must-win’ or a ‘six-pointer’. But in the end it was more of a ‘must-not lose’ game. If we’d have lost then we would have started to t look at the table the wrong way. ““We still see that there’s on only a f ew points s separating us from 12th.
“We might be in the b bottom three but we h have games we can win. But we have to make su sure we are not giving th things away either. ““If a gap starts to open up t then you very much know about ab it. It’s in our hands. “W “We have h looked l k at the fixtures. We have plotted our way to the end.
“We have some tough matches that we will be trying to win, but there are also games against teams around us. They are massive.
“We can’t be losing them. We need to pick up three points from them and then we will find ourselves out of the relegation zone.
“We are in this position as a team. We haven’t played well enough. We are the ones to blame. We have got what it takes and I believe we will be safe.
“But all that has gone before is irrelevant if we finish the season well.” MANCHESTER CITY star Oleksandr Zinchenko has revealed his loan spell at PSV Eindhoven helped him crack European football and impress Pep Guardiola.
Ukrainian star Zinchenko was sent on loan to PSV last season by former Barca boss Guardiola.
At big clubs like City, loan moves for youngsters often lead to a dead end but instead the 21-year-old has broken into a Dutch side packed with superstars.
“It was better to move to another club like PSV so I could gain experience there,” he said.
“The football is different in Russia and Ukraine. It’s not like it is in Europe. But I’m used to it here now and it’s easier for me.”
Chance
Zinchenko, a midfielder when he was signed by City from Ukrainian side FC Ufa in 2016, has been converted to left-back by Guardiola in recent games – and he has taken his chance. “I just waited for my chance and now I must keep going,” he said. “Of course I had a goal and knew I had to train hard. Now I’m very happy to be part of this team. “I’m still learning and every bit of advice from the manager is important. “I think he pays attention to everyone in this team. It’s very important because we are one family. “And it is done step by step because every young player is still learning. “Especially me, because I’m training with some amazing superstars and amazing training staff. They give me sound advice every day.”