Pep Guardiola was happy not to make any substitutions in Manchester City’s 2-0 win against Fulham today, despite his advocating for five substitutes to be the norm.
City continued their good run of form with a 2-0 win over the London team thanks to goals from Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne on Saturday. With this win they moved up to fifth place and are now just four points away from the top of the table.
The Manchester side never looked like they were going to lose on this afternoon, as they played with a real sense of authority.
So, it was quite a surprise to see Guardiola not make a single substitution, but with a Champions League game in midweek and the Manchester derby next weekend, the Spaniard explained that he will field a different team for Wednesday’s game.
According to Daily Mail, he said:
“The team were more or less good. The guys who didn’t play today are going to play on Wednesday.
“I decided to put 90 minutes in their legs today and a fresh 90 minutes for the game on Wednesday. After Wednesday we’re going to see what the best selection is for United.
“For the last 25 minutes, Kevin (De Bruyne) did feel a little bit tired.”
The big advantage that City have in the Champions League is that their position at the top of their group is more or less not under risk. They have confirmed qualification to the Round of 16 and, in all likelihood, will top the group as well.
Therefore, it would make sense for the manager to rotate his squad for the midweek game. It could open up an opportunity for some of the younger players who might not usually get a chance.
The City boss has been a vocal proponent for the introduction of five substitutes instead of the current three and the Spaniard has made his support of this move known in the past saying that it was to protect the players.
Whatever his reasoning behind supporting that rule may be, he was happy not to bring on anyone against Fulham. Manchester City cruised to a victory and that is what Guardiola will be focused on. After a somewhat shaky start to their Premier League season, they are now back on track.
With the City players playing like they have a point to prove, it bodes well for their upcoming games.