Pep Guardiola backed Abdukodir Khusanov to bounce back from his horrific Manchester City debut against Chelsea after bare minimum training.
The 20-year-old defender, who joined City from Lens for £34 million ($42.45m) earlier this week, was thrust into the starting lineup at the Etihad Stadium despite having barely trained with his new team. Khusanov’s nerves were apparent from the outset as his miscalculated header back to goalkeeper Ederson was intercepted by Nicolas Jackson, allowing Noni Madueke to give Chelsea the lead just three minutes into the match.
The young Uzbekistan international’s troubles continued moments later when a reckless challenge on Cole Palmer earned him a yellow card. The incident was reviewed by VAR for a possible red card, but after a brief check play resumed.
Speaking to Match of the Day after the match, Guardiola defended his decision to start Khusanov and emphasised the learning opportunities such moments provide.
“It is not easy for him,” he said. “He trains once and then to play against Jackson and Cole and Madueke and Sancho. It is a process when you buy a player this young. He will learn. These kinds of actions are the best lesson you can take.”
When asked if he had addressed Khusanov’s error directly, Guardiola revealed that language barriers prevented immediate communication.
“He doesn’t speak English so I didn’t speak to him,” he told Sky Sports. “He’ll be fine. He only made one or two training sessions. I didn’t want to push John [Stones] returning from injury – with Wednesday’s game [against Club Brugge]. The players were together. That was massively important. Any player can make a mistake. The fans always support the new players. He’s so young. He will learn.”
Despite the early setback, City recovered to secure a commanding 3-1 victory over Chelsea. Goals from Josko Gvardiol, Erling Haaland, and Phil Foden turned the tide in favour of the hosts, who were eager to bounce back after their midweek loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
Now their attention turns to a crucial Champions League clash against Club Brugge on Wednesday which will be followed by a blockbuster Premier League encounter against Arsenal on February 2.
Goal.com
