As a new season dawns, Manchester City will enter as defending champions, for the fourth time in the past five years. So are they motivated to give it another go at yet another league title this season. City manager Pep Guardiola was asked that very question at his weekly press conference today.
Never at the start we think to win the league,” he answered. “We don’t need the perspective to see what we’ve done is massive. How the players move. The rivals, mainly Liverpool, we’ve won four in six years, we are incredibly proud.”
West Ham vs Manchester City FYIs
When is it? Sunday, August 7, 4:30 PM UK Time.
Where is it? Olympic Stadium, London
What about the Manchester City Preview Material? team news here
And the Hammers? Team News Starting XI Prediction
What is the West Ham Team News? go here
Who’s in form? West Ham (DDLDD) Man City (–WWL)
What are the odds? West Ham (+750) Man City (-270) Draw (+425)
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“I’d like to say loud how good we’ve done. We travel tomorrow to London and do a good game in West Ham, always we struggle in beginning of the season. We try to avoid it, we have long weeks preparation, every week we get better. Be competitive, be consistent. I know what we can do. We want to make the next step in the way we play and this is the desire to do it.
Erling Haaland had a major gaffe in the Community Shield, skying a sitter, the footage of which went crazy viral online. This mistake led to a lot of criticism of the giant Norwegian, and Guardiola was asked how the young striker is handling the pressure.
“I don’t know how many goals he will score and I don’t care,” he responded.
“As much as he is, does what he has done in his young career. We are not going to win for Erling or lose for Erling, we have to be ourselves. He’s quick, he’s a guy who played 90 mins last week for the first time in five months, he’s a big figure physically, maybe needs more time to get to conditions. If he has doubts he’ll score goals, he will score goals, he has done every year.
“Just adapt the way he plays, and we will adapt the final third to him. I don’t have any doubts but the goals he will score I don’t know.
Manchester City Starting XI Prediction at West Ham United (Season Opener)
Ederson; Cancelo, Ake, Dias, Walker; Rodri, De Bruyne; Foden, Grealish, Mahrez, Haaland
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.