It’s matchday in the Premier League, with Manchester City set to take on Brentford as they aim to move within two points of Arsenal.
Follow the news of the day here on readmancity.com.
Erling Haaland loses out to Bruno Fernandes in FWA awards
Despite Haaland’s brilliance for Man City, Bruno Fernandes has been declared as the official Football Writers’ Association player of the year.
The midfielder claimed 45 per cent of the votes, while Arsenal’s Declan Rice finished in second place, losing out by 28 votes.
Haaland came third, which is a real kick in the teeth for City’s star striker. After all, his contributions have done bigger things than Fernandes’ have for Man United.
Speaking on talkSPORT’s Fiery Fridays podcast, Adrian Durham has taken aim at the FWA for selecting Fernandes over Haaland and Rice.
According to the pundit, the 31-year-old contributed to Ruben Amorim’s sacking, while Haaland and Rice are pushing their respective teams towards the Premier League title.
He said: “Arsenal & City giving us a title race while also dealing with Europe & domestic cups. Yet Bruno is Football Writers’ Player of the Year despite playing less than 40 games and being part of a team that got a manager sacked in United’s laziest ever season?”
Pep Guardiola frustrated by Man City’s defending
Guardiola has admitted that City made life too easy for the Toffees during the 3-3 draw. The Catalan manager insisted that David Moyes’ side deserved credit.
However, he was also clear that Man City’s defending was not good enough in key moments. The homeside ended up scoring three goals in 13 minutes against the visitors.
“We didn’t win against Everton for many reasons; the quality of David Moyes, the team. At the end, if the opponent scored goals, OK, do something to score a goal against Man City and not give them away,” Guardiola said.
The Catalan gaffer added, “And the problem with the game against Everton was the goals we conceded were so, so easy.”
Pep Guardiola backs Phil Foden to return
Guardiola has made it clear that he has no doubts about Foden’s ability or long-term importance at Man City.
Speaking about the midfielder’s situation, the manager claimed that a player should never forget their own skills or potential.
“As a player, never forget who you are, your skills, your potential. Just go back to who you are – nothing [else]. Don’t pretend to be something different or something special, and it will come,” Guardiola said ahead of the Brentford clash.
The gaffer isn’t accusing Foden of lacking effort or discipline. He made it clear that the opposite is true and that Foden is trying to do unnecessary reinvention.
Rayan Cherki sends Man City title message
Cherki says City are focused on winning every game between now and the end of the campaign. Following their latest result, not doing so will only result in Arsenal winning the league.
Man City drew 3-3 against Everton in what was their latest Premier League clash. Likewise, the Citizens are left with no margin for error if they’d want a chance at the title.
“As long as there’s hope, there’s life, so we’re not going to give up. I think you have to win every game, try to get as many clean sheets as possible, score as many goals as possible”, the Frenchman said.
The 22-year-old also mentioned that the club remains in the same mindset since the FIFA Club World Cup last year.
“The only thing on our minds is victory. We’re still in the same frame of mind we’ve been in since the start of the season. Our mindset hasn’t changed since the Club World Cup,” Cherki added.
Rodri returns to partial Man City training
Guardiola has confirmed that Rodri returned to partial first-team training on Thursday. Speaking ahead of City’s Premier League clash against Brentford, the manager provided the update.
However, the Catalan manager wasn’t sure regarding the Spaniard’s availability for the game against Brentford.
“He started to make partial training, and today we’ll see… I hope [he plays again this season]. I hope so,” Guardiola said in the pre-match press conference.
That is an encouraging update for City, especially given the timing of the midfielder’s injury. City are expected to assess him further before deciding whether he can be involved against Brentford.
Bunny Shaw named FWA Women’s Footballer of the Year
Shaw has been named the Football Writers’ Association Women’s Footballer of the Year for the second time.
The 29-year-old won the vote by a landslide after scoring 19 goals in 21 WSL appearances this campaign. FWA chair John Cross described Shaw as a ‘worthy winner’ and said the standards she has set have been ‘remarkable’.
It is a fair summary of her entire Manchester City spell, which is most probably coming to an end this summer.
Since joining from Bordeaux in 2021, Shaw has scored 110 goals in 133 appearances, becoming the club’s all-time top scorer.
She has been City’s most reliable match-winner, and without her contributions this season, their WSL title triumph would almost certainly not have been possible.
