Pep Guardiola saw his Manchester City players secure their first Champions League win this season on Tuesday night.
After picking up a second Premier League draw in a row against Newcastle United, City beat Slovan Bratislava 4-0 away from home in midweek.
Four different players from City’s squad got their names on the scoresheet in Slovakia, which is something nobody was able to do in last month’s 0-0 draw against Inter Milan at the Etihad Stadium.
To highlight how much City dominated the game, Guardiola’s side racked up 28 shots at goal in total while having 76% possession compared to the home team’s three shots and 24% possession.
Once the match had ended, the 53-year-old shared his thoughts on what he saw from one particular player from the starting XI.
Pep Guardiola drops Phil Foden verdict after Man City’s victory over Slovan Bratislava
Speaking in his post-match press conference after the game against Bratislava, Guardiola said this when asked about what he made of Phil Foden’s performance and if he’s close to being at his best version on the pitch.
He said: “Yeah he still is not his best, make a fantastic goal, pass the ball to the post no shoot he had more chances. Step by step he’s coming back.”
What did Guardiola say about Foden before City’s match against Bratislava?
So far this season, Foden has only started two matches for City across all competitions, with the 2-1 win over Watford in the Carabao Cup being his first and the recent victory against Bratislava being his second.
Ahead of Tuesday’s game, Guardiola highlighted the problems Foden has been dealing with so far this season that have led to him not being particularly prominent in the side but reassured how important he is for City.
In addition to scoring City’s second goal of the night against the Slovakian side, the Englishman made three key passes and had five shots at goal in total, hitting the woodwork on one occasion in the process.
This display ultimately earned the 24-year-old an impressive overall match rating of 8.9/10 from SofaScore, making him the second-highest-rated City player for this game.
With Guardiola now saying that while he was pleased with Foden’s goal and the other chances he had to score, the midfielder still has more to improve on before he can be considered to be back at his best, this highlights how much the manager is looking to push the player to do just that.
