Pep Guardiola Press Conference | Stones injury update | Chelsea vs Man City

good afternoon pep um next up for you is a trip to an improving Chelsea I think it's one defeat in their last five Premier League games what have you made of them under maritzio pochettino and what are you expecting from them I'm not there so it's normal though this getting better every manager needs his time so new club new players but uh sooner or later and I guess sooner than later will be top uh you know be a a contender because the quality in all departments are there I want to focus on uh Rico Lewis he's become a a real key member of your first team squad how much are you pleased with his progress and how far can he go if he if he was a little bit taller we'll be considered one of the best players in the Premier League the problem is you have this uh so small so small is an exceptional an exceptional player so and his contribution since last season arrive and start to settle with us every game have played I played in the highest standards in all departments defensively offensively understand the game the movements uh yeah it's it's we are really really pleased for Academy players uh became a can be a regular player is already regular player in many many moment so we are really pleased and just finally for me is your team this season and this is going to sound a silly question playing better than the team that won the treble last season I don't know the team last season played really good in the previous season as well in the previous season as well so a consistency Define a little B this type of group all this period together so I'm not going to undermine and underestimate the previous teams even the first first season the second season when we had 100 points like in every season real has changed but the mentality and the consistency have been there hi pep um couple of days I guess to assess him how is Jon Stones what's the diagnosis uh he's injur he not ready for uh for tomorrow and we'll see when come back for international break is it possible for the Liverpool game for example I don't know who do you look to fill the Jon Stones role you said on Tuesday night you are in trouble uh when he when he's missing the way he he helps knit the team together who' you look to to fill that well the partnership withon R especially last season and the theine season the fine moments of the last season have been one of the key points for us but unfortunately this season we could use him not much for the inur so but now it's time to reflect what we have to do we can do better to don't be Ry then and and when he come back be a consistent in terms of being ready to to be used how's Manuel maneli as well yeah good good for Sunday we trained today and train good um finally just one on Cole Palmer since he left he wanted game time that's one of the reasons he said that he left he he's seemingly making it work what have you have you managed to watch much of him at Chelsea really play so the reason why was that WI a game time he has it so congratulations so he's a guy he came from the academy is having success is because he good for him and wish him the best yeah just on Cole P um yeah you feel it's a shame that he's not he's no longer here when when he's obviously doing quite well at Chelsea no congratulations for Chelsea for him on another Chelsea player rahee Sterling who you work with for a number of years did you feel um do you feel are you surprised that he um that there's no place for him in the England Squad he's playing really good he's back in his best moments B best performance what I've seen lately so always create incredible dungeons for the oppent what he has done here with us for many many years part of the big success we had in the early ages early early years together Rahim was really really important understand it's still early but you said no to the Liverpool game have you got in your mind any idea when Stones is coming back is it as bad as you first thought cuz you were pretty down about it no no no the the doctor said to me it's not as bad but still I don't know I don't want to install or create Tempo uh when he's going to be fit again and he's going to come back um GTH Southgate talked yesterday about those players not getting regular game time it's just this game and the one Camp before the Eur Rose um Calvin Phillips one of those names that was talked about again how much of an opportunity does he have now maybe have with a number of your side injured it's normal the situation from from G but he have a lot of confidence with uh with Calvin and we are really pleased with that I said many times he deserved the best and it's normal that he wants players for the national team that play regularly this normal but in the other cases have been there are many many national team managers that when rely on one player it doesn't matter play a lot or not you're rely on and this is the key Point hi P you've said a lot recently the football isn't copy paste and you can't just get one player to do another in terms of Jon's injury in that partnership with rodri and having the extra man in Midfield do you think is something that yosco gradio could do maybe eventually it seems like he's got similar characteristics to be able to do that yeah maybe but I did still I didn't prove it in the training session and and some drills that we do to see how you move in a position more Central I still I didn't see it so maybe in the future because he's 21 years old I can do it in the beginning when we arrived we could not expect that Jun could do that and after did it that fact that the John can do it is because have been eight years together and many many many many examples of trainings or concepts is there so at the endend josco is just two three months four months with us so we need more time and I was speaking to Matias Mana yesterday I believe Matias Mana you the Argentinian he's the analyst for them he's he said to mention his name you might enjoy it um he wants well we were talking about julan Alvarez his best position because for Argentino in the last International break he played with Laro Martinez up front obviously he's played a few different positions for you what do you think is his best position and why I can pay a striker behind a striker Central position close to the box to help you for the first intense pressing and after he moved really every time much better in the pockets but normally it's a nine but can play like a second second strike behind erling in that case so in Argentina like play with with Messi can play more forward like uh alide Sim like Laro but he can play in central positions he he's adapting really well yeah he um obviously there's been quite a big overhaul in Squad uh this year as well as well as last year what similarities do you see between your first year here and poos at Chelsea I don't know first is a long time ago and I even forgot what happened first season and I'm not dead so I could not give you an answer I don't know and you mentioned cardio there being 21 obviously you've got four five six exceptionally good young players that are between 20 and and 23 how important has it been for the club over the last couple of years to have to have gone out and got those or developed because it probably going to set the club up for the next five six seven years yeah it's it's a good point when you had changes you AG is important we can make one sign like Mato for example but the other ones always we try to bring young young young players to be make his career start his career his name in the world football here and and it's really really important yeah because it's a financially issue but espe sport sportive is good we would love to have always still all Legend that we had here then still play play but the time is pass for everyone especially for the athlets and bring mat and josco and Jeremy and yeah you know Oscar Bob now is come with us Rico Lewis and this type of players is really important with as much they are here train session Game season season at the end we'll we'll control we'll feel that uh I can be here and this is incredible value for us for the replace teams we have done two or three times already since we arve and still be consistent it works talks for itself how good the chiy and foran and all the people involved in the in the transfers and the decision they have to made to bring players here is really good just ask stick to one just cuz I've got four of you to yeah hi pep you you've qualified for The Knockout stages of the Champion League 11 years now which speaks to Great consistency and suggests you're one of the leading most consistent teams in Europe but when you look at a club like Chelsea who were obviously at the top in England for so many years competing for the title and obviously haven't been for the last two three years is that kind of a warning that that nothing's taken for you can't take anything for granted that there's no guarantees and you've got to really sort of maintain that consistency to avoid what's happened to Chelsea absolutely absolutely I'm not again any comment about CH I'm not there but uh always we talk and remind ourself so last day for example we qualify it's normal celebrate I said to the play celebrate it because one day maybe we are not there if we stop to do what you have to do and maybe the opponents are better than us we will not be there and uh and that's why I'm completely agree with you for the fact that uh we have done in the past we're not doing well you go down and the down never end you can be more and more and more so that's why taking perspective be calm relax make good moments and bad moments for everywhere every team around the world not for the fact we are just named Man City or and the last years have been good that means it's going to happen in the future in the nearly you know not in the in 10 years you know tomorrow if you have aware of that you are closer that still be consistent still there in Europe for the many years pep I think Kevin said he was due a scan this week on his um injury is there an update on on that and um when you might expect him back I don't know I spoke with him two days ago and I yeah he said I feel really good but still is not training with us not I think running much and uh I don't know but I would say it's the last you know time to come back to start to train with us so I think I I don't know I would like to say in two weeks one week three weeks but this kind of Ines better don't put pressure well he feels good and the doctors and FES say okay next step next step is coming no no no put pressure and it's like you said with John the two colleagues of you ask me about that so recover so it's not necessary to to do the bad decisions or wrong decisions to come back early for days or weeks and after back again so Kev was a t injur was a surgery so step by step hi pep in in your first season here um Chelsea won the title Antonio K's team what's kind of like your first challenge after that to sort of to to knock Chelsea down a bit and the fact that they haven't really been a real title Challenger to you ever since is that one of your main achievements here do you think the achievement is what we have done not because it's Chelsea or in other clubs Chelsea remains one of the more important teams in England no no problem in that period won the Champions League with Thomas Tel so against us so it's true that in the Premier League uh we're not close to win the Premier leagu in the seasons but uh he's one of the strongest team there's no doubts about that so I see that last games they are alive they good spirit they are aggressive they have a good pattern so the quality is there it's one of the toughest games that we have during the season but in the same time we go there with a yeah optimistics for we have seen the way they training the mood of the team team we are right now an spetic for two three weeks ago top of the league right now and this is what we have to try to maintain the level the quality of the of