‘I’m sorry, we need a striker’ – Pep calls for action in Man City transfer rant
Pep Guardiola has urged Manchester City to sign a striker as competing in the Premier League without one is “sometimes not possible”.
After the departure of Sergio Aguero last summer, City went all out for Harry Kane but could not agree on a transfer fee with Tottenham Hotspur.
They opted to sign Jack Grealish instead but the £100m man is yet to justify his price tag, with the focus set to return to the striker department at the end of the season.
Dour derby on the cards but Man Utd can copy Spurs to sink City
Their primary target is thought to be Erling Haaland, the Borussia Dortmund marksman. His £68m release clause becomes active this summer, and with 80 goals in 79 appearances for the German giants, he won’t be short of suitors.
Guardiola, who has relied on false nines this season, has praised his players’ ability to adapt, but believes bringing in an elite striker is the crucial next step for the league leaders.
“I think the club needs a striker, definitely,” he said ahead of Sunday’s clash with Manchester United.
“I’m sorry, maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t agree with you. You say we play fantastically well without a striker because we are winning. When we are not winning, you say we need a striker, [that] I’m naive.
“‘How do these guys play without a striker? In the Premier League you have to play with a striker.’ We try but sometimes it’s not possible.
“We have 14, 15, 16 players and after five/six in the academy who are top, top players, I love to work with that, everybody’s involved. It’s difficult for me to be a manager with 18, 19, 20 top-class players and, every weekend, nine or 10 players in the [stands], it’s impossible to handle it for a long, long time.
“We need a striker, I think the club is going to try. It hasn’t happened but in the end we adapt. We adapt to the players and never complain; they are too good for me, I admire them and I like to work with them.
“If we have a striker, we play in a different way but if you don’t have it you have to adapt with the quality that we have.”
