January 11, (THEWILL) – Pep Guardiola has admitted that he had some “ridiculous” ideas ahead of this weekend’s Manchester derby.
On January 14, at Old Trafford, the two Manchester clubs—who are only four points apart in the English Premier League standings—will square off for the second time this season. While he has not yet chosen his starting lineup for the match this weekend, he has hinted at some ideas going into the game.
He stated: “I would like to arrive against United with all the players having a similar amount of minutes in their legs. I have a few ideas and thoughts—ridiculous ones for the match against United, but I still haven’t watched their past few games. I have to see the way they play at home and if they have changed something, I’ll have to review it. That’s why I don’t have a clear line-up against United.”
With their eighth straight victory in all competitions, United are in commanding shape ahead of the derby, easily dispatching Charlton Athletic 3-0 on January 10 and after his team’s lopsided 6-3 loss in their first meeting back in October, Erik ten Hag will take on Guardiola for the second time as United boss.
With a five-game winning streak of their own, City will be looking to crush their opponents and keep pursuing EPL leaders, Arsenal with a decisive victory. But, Guardiola must deal with tonight’s challenging Carabao Cup match against Southampton, who are at the bottom of the standings, before he can concentrate on the Manchester derby.
