Man City boss Guardiola urges caution over rushing Sergio Aguero back: ‘I want to be sure for him’
Man City see off Arsenal
Manchester City faced a trip to Arsenal on Sunday afternoon, aiming to make it 18 wins in a row across all competitions.
And, when all was said and done at the Emirates, this is exactly what Pep Guardiola’s side managed.
Raheem Sterling and Riyad Mahrez combined inside two minutes to fire the Sky Blues into the lead:
🎙 | “It’s a brutal start from Manchester City!”
Raheem Sterling nods in the opener after less than 2 minutes – what a start! ⏰
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From there, Arsenal were able to keep a usually fierce City attack relatively quiet, though the Gunners offered little at the other end.
This eventually resulted in the final whistle blowing with the score at 1-0, ensuring that the visitors’ 10-point lead atop the Premier League remains intact for another week.
Guardiola on Sergio Aguero
Following his side’s latest win, meanwhile, Pep Guardiola opened up on Sergio Aguero.
The Argentine, following a lengthy injury layoff, has been on City’s bench for their last three league outings.
However, Aguero is yet to make an appearance since his return, leaving the Citizens faithful wondering when their star striker will be back in action.
Speaking on Sunday, though, whilst Guardiola assured that he is looking forward to reintroducing Aguero to his lineup, the Spaniard also urged caution when it comes to rushing the hitman back:
“I am looking forward to putting him in. We cannot forget he was a long time injured and you get rhythm when you play minutes.
“But he deserves to play and I want it. I want to say keep working hard and your time is coming. “It’s about his physical condition – he was one year injured; he only played a few minutes.
“I want to be sure for him – for us as well – but for him.”
Quotes via Manchester City’s official website.
This article was edited by
Conor Laird.
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Premier League table
# | Team | MP | D | P |
1 | Manchester City FC | 24 | 34 | 56 |
2 | Leicester City FC | 25 | 17 | 49 |
3 | Manchester United FC | 24 | 19 | 46 |
4 | West Ham United FC | 25 | 10 | 45 |
5 | Chelsea FC | 25 | 16 | 43 |
6 | Liverpool FC | 25 | 11 | 40 |
7 | Everton FC | 24 | 4 | 40 |
8 | Aston Villa FC | 23 | 11 | 36 |
9 | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 24 | 10 | 36 |
10 | Arsenal FC | 24 | 6 | 34 |
11 | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 25 | -6 | 33 |
12 | Leeds United | 24 | -3 | 32 |
13 | Southampton FC | 24 | -9 | 30 |
14 | Crystal Palace FC | 24 | -15 | 29 |
15 | Burnley FC | 25 | -12 | 28 |
16 | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 24 | -5 | 26 |
17 | Newcastle United FC | 24 | -15 | 25 |
18 | Fulham FC | 25 | -11 | 22 |
19 | West Bromwich Albion | 25 | -36 | 14 |
20 | Sheffield United FC | 25 | -26 | 11 |
Player | Team | Goals |
---|---|---|
Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 17 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 15 |
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 13 |
Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 12 |
Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 12 |
Gundogan, Ilkay | Manchester City FC | 11 |
Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 10 |
Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 9 |
Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 9 |
Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 9 |
Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace FC | 9 |
Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 8 |
Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 8 |
Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 8 |
Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick | Arsenal FC | 8 |
Soucek, Tomas | West Ham United FC | 8 |
Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 7 |
Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
---|---|---|---|
Bellerin, Hector | Arsenal FC | 0 | 8 |
Gallagher, Conor | West Bromwich Albion | 0 | 8 |
Lundstram, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
Evans, Jonny | Leicester City FC | 0 | 7 |
Egan, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 6 |
Milivojevic, Luka | Crystal Palace FC | 1 | 6 |
Hayden, Isaac | Newcastle United FC | 0 | 7 |
Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 6 |
Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 6 |
Hojbjerg, Pierre | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 0 | 6 |
Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 5 |
Maguire, Harry | Manchester United FC | 0 | 6 |
Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 6 |
Luiz, Douglas | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 5 |
Kante, N`Golo | Chelsea FC | 0 | 6 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 0 | 5 |
Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 0 | 5 |
Soucek, Tomas | West Ham United FC | 1 | 4 |
Dallas, Stuart | Leeds United | 0 | 5 |
Player | Team | Assists |
---|---|---|
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 11 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 10 |
Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City FC | 9 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 6 |
Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 6 |
Cresswell, Aaron | West Ham United FC | 6 |
Digne, Lucas | Everton FC | 6 |
Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 5 |
Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 5 |
Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 5 |
Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 5 |
Werner, Timo | Chelsea FC | 5 |
Raphinha | Leeds United | 5 |
Robertson, Andrew | Liverpool FC | 5 |
Shaw, Luke | Manchester United FC | 5 |
Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 4 |
Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 4 |
Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 4 |
Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 4 |