Pep Guardiola has revealed he has some “ridiculous ideas” in his head for Saturday's Manchester derby showdown.
City are at Southampton tonight in the EFL Cup quarter-finals, meaning United have an extra 24 hours to prepare for the clash against their local rivals. Guardiola said the quick turnaround between tonight's tie and Saturday's game has led him to entertain the prospect of springing a selection shock at Old Trafford.
“I have a few ideas, thoughts, ridiculous ones against United, but still I didn’t watch their last games,” said Guardiola. “For the FA Cup game against Chelsea I made a lot of changes for one reason - how tired some of the players were after the Premier League game there, after the trip.
“We arrived back too late and the day after I saw the players tired in training. I'd like to arrive against United with the average of minutes in the legs of the players quite similar.
“But I have to see the way they play at home and if they change something. I still have to review it, that's why I don’t have a clear line-up against United.”
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In January 2020, City beat United 3-1 in a League Cup semi-final first leg without a recognised striker, with Kevin De Bruyne claiming they worked on the formation for just 15 minutes before the game.
City were beaten by Lyon in the Champions League quarter-finals that same year, when Guardiola decided to play with three at the back. And in the Champions League final against Chelsea in 2021, Guardiola started without a recognised holding midfielder, as City lost 1-0 in Porto.
Pep Guardiola is primed to make some strange selections for Man City this weekend (Matt McNulty - Manchester City/Manchester City FC via Getty Images)One of Guardiola's selection considerations is whether to give Kalvin Phillips his first start for City since his £50m move from Leeds in the summer - although Rodri stands in the way of a regular place in the starting XI.
Asked if Phillips can win his battle with Rodri, Guardiola said: “Why not? It depends on him how he is able to fight with Rodri. That's why the big clubs must have these kinds of feelings.
“Rodri knows a little bit more about what we want to do. The quality of the long balls, Kalvin is better than Rodri. In the shorter spaces in the first actions and controls, Rodri is better.
“We need Kalvin, I said that from day one. When he didn't train for the first game after the World Cup. it was 'I don't want you injured when you're not fit'.
“You're more at risk in a training session or in games. It's better to stay away for a few days and, when you're fit or in the condition to train, go. This is what happened after a few days - his weight was perfect and he was back training.
“Sometimes he's not ready for some niggles or problems. Then I prefer if a player has one day out, because you're not going to lose anything.
“I said many times, if you're not ready for the training guys, take a day off. If you're not ready for many reasons - personal issues or physical issues - no problem. I'm pretty sure Kalvin is frustrated, when you come to a new club and cannot play, but the shoulder was the main thing.
“After surgery, he came back from the World Cup perfectly and now he feels fine, just a question of time, minutes, the amount of games we have, we're going to use him.”
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