Philadelphia (United States): The Spanish coach Pep Guardiola considered Manchester City coach on Tuesday that last season was “one of the most difficult seasons” in his training career, noting that the FIFA World Cup is the beginning of a new season and an opportunity to open a new page, before the first match against Moroccan Wydad on Wednesday.
“It is the beginning of the season. In sport, what happened in the past, whether good or bad, is forgotten, so we feel that we start a new season,” said 54 -year -old.
The team begins its career from Lincoln Financial Field, facing Wydad, one of the most prominent clubs in North Africa who qualified for the competition as a former African Champions League champion, in a group that also includes the Emirati Ain and Juventus.
“Football has evolved a lot around the world. All of these teams have individual talents,” said Guardiola.
“A good example is Riyad Mahrez from Algeria, my God, what a player! They have really great players.”
“We are a great respect for them. We have seen everything we were able to matches. We have a plan for the match, and we are here to present a good competition and start tomorrow.”
Guardiola talked about the international Jack Grilliche, who was excluded from the list of the team participating in the World Cup, noting that he needed to restore his passion for football.
“Jack is an exceptional player,” said Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach, former Bayern Munich coach.
He added, “We decided that the best for him is to stay in a place in which he could restore his level that he presented during the trilogy season or during his career with Aston Villa.”
Grilliche joined Manchester City in 2021, and emerged during the 2023 season 2023, in which the team won the Champions League, the English Premier League and the Federation Cup. But he started only 10 games in the following season, and participated in only 16 games in all competitions this season.
“Without Grilliche, it was difficult to achieve what we accomplished in the trilogy season, but the truth is that in the last two seasons he did not play many minutes,” Guardiola continued.
He explained, “He must return to play, and restore that feeling of enthusiasm and anticipation that the player needs to play a match every three days.”
Although he was excluded, Guardiola hinted that Grilliche’s future is not necessarily far from Al -Ittihad stadium.
Manchester City, who finished the league in third place, held four contracts in the last transfer market to renew blood in the team in preparation for the Club World Cup.
The club included the Dutch midfielder Tijani Raends, talented French playmaker Ryan East, Algerian left -back Ryan Ait Nuri, and alternative goalkeeper Marcus Betinelli.
