Pep Guardiola provided updates on Kevin de Bruyne’s injury status, shared thoughts on Erik ten Hag’s sacking at Manchester United, and offered insights into the recent Ballon d’Or results ahead of Manchester City’s Carabao Cup clash with Tottenham tonight.
Discussing De Bruyne’s road to recovery, Guardiola said, “Kevin can’t play yet. Hopefully, after the international break, he can feel good.” Despite some progress, De Bruyne still experiences pain when kicking the ball. “He feels better, can train, but the level we need for competition, he still has pain” Guardiola noted.
🔵⚠️ Pep Guardiola confirms: "Kevin de Bruyne can't play yet. Hopefully, after the international break he can feel good".
"He feels better, can train, but the level we need for competition, when he kicks the ball he still has pain". pic.twitter.com/sdRTfza7Pf
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 30, 2024
Turning to recent managerial changes, Guardiola responded to questions about Erik ten Hag’s dismissal from Manchester United, saying, “We are open to Erik ten Hag visiting us. Anytime! Seriously! Always we are open, but I think it’s not going to happen.” He added, “I know his agent a little bit, so the relation is there, no problem for me, for us.”
On Ruben Amorim, the leading candidate to succeed Ten Hag at Manchester United, Guardiola had high praise. “The experience against Ruben’s Sporting was very good. I spoke with Matheus Nunes, and he spoke highly. This season he’s unbeaten, winning all of the games in the league, and in the Champions League, he has the same points as us.”
Guardiola also weighed in on the Ballon d’Or debate. While City’s Rodri took home the award, Guardiola acknowledged the fierce competition from Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr. “If Vini would have won the Ballon d’Or, it would have been more than well deserved!” He also hinted at the different reaction from Erling Haaland after missing out on the prize last year, Guardiola remarked, “Erling was there, he was happy, congratulated Messi, and OK, let’s try to do next season!”