Manchester City boss Enzo Maresca has confirmed that goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma is not an "undroppable" option, but the Italian stressed he will be first choice against Brighton on Saturday in the Premier League.
Donnarumma has come under fire lately after a run of errors in the opening months of the season. The pressure on the former Paris Saint-Germain keeper only grew when his deputy Gianluigi Rulli caught the eye in the Carabao Cup win over Brighton on penalties in midweek.
Maresca brushed all of that aside. He renewed his full confidence in his 27-year-old goalkeeper and confirmed Donnarumma will start against Brighton at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Explaining his stance, Maresca told ESPN: "I think there is a difference between saying that the line-up at this moment is Gigio + 10 players, and saying that he is an untouchable player. These are two completely different things. There is no undroppable player, but at the moment I see the line-up as Gigio + 10 players."
Brighton coach Fabian Hürzeler had talked up his desire for revenge after his side lost to City on penalties following a 2-2 draw. Maresca played it down, though he still expects another tough test against the team sitting third in the table.
On the revenge talk, Maresca said: "It will be a difficult match again. Regardless of whether the opponent is playing a different competition or with a different line-up, they always try to take the initiative and press to attack. They have many attacking players and create many chances, but we will try to give the best we have to win. As for talk of revenge and those matters, that concerns them, not us."
Hürzeler had also claimed City were lucky in the cup clash. Maresca kept his response brief: "That is what he said, and every coach has his opinion and his view of things according to what he sees with his own eyes. I respect what he said, and we are preparing for the match in the best possible way to continue winning."
The City boss also touched on former player Jack Grealish, now on loan at Everton after being left out by the club over a disciplinary breach.
Maresca declined to say whether Grealish can return to the top again, offering only a word in his favour: "I still believe he is a good boy, and he has a big and wonderful heart. I still truly believe that."