Guardiola can be thankful City will go into the match at the Etihad Stadium only five points behind leaders Liverpool. Without Kompany's authority, City are vulnerable to switching off, and that cost them heavily at Newcastle. Guardiola needs the Belgium midfielder back to his best if City are to stand any chance of catching Liverpool. "We are in the Carabao (League) Cup final, still in the Champions League, and we are there in the league. Their only serious hope of a trophy is in the Europa League, a tournament in which they have largely fielded fringe players this season.

Source: The Nation Bangkok February 02, 2019 01:18 UTC