Joao Cancelo Pep Guardiola Manchester City Bayern Munich Getty Images

'Me, me, me!' - A dig at Joao Cancelo? Pep Guardiola makes clear statement about disgruntled Man City players who don't get picked

  • Guardiola criticised certain players' 'me, me, me' attitude
  • He praised Alvarez for reacting well to being left out
  • Cancelo left for Bayern after losing place to Ake

WHAT HAPPENED? The Manchester City head coach was discussing how Julian Alvarez deals with not starting many matches but appeared to make a sly reference to Joao Cancelo, who was sent out on loan to Bayern Munich in January for reacting badly to being dropped from the starting XI.

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WHAT THEY SAID: "If the players who don't play are like 'me me me, I I I', I don't care and after I don't pay much attention," Guardiola told a press conference before City's FA Cup quarter-final tie against Burnley.

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Cancelo has been one of City's most important players since joining from Juventus in 2019, scoring nine goals and providing 22 assists in 154 appearances. But he drifted out of the team after the World Cup, with Guardiola preferring to play Nathan Ake at left-back instead of the Portuguese. Cancelo opened up on the rupture with Guardiola last month, saying: "I thought I deserved to play and he didn't."

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IN THREE PHOTOS:

Pep Guardiola Manchester City 2022-23Getty ImagesJoao Cancelo Bayern 2023GettyJoao Cancelo Pep Guardiola Man City 2022-23Getty Images

AND WHAT'S MORE: Cancelo, who has only just won his place back in the team after being dropped due to his training levels, will get the chance to have a crack at City this season, with the two teams to face off in the Champions League and the Portuguese eligible to play.

WHAT NEXT FOR MANCHESTER CITY? Guardiola's side welcome former captain and club icon Vincent Kompany when they host Burnley in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday. The first leg of their Champions League tie with Bayern, meanwhile, is scheduled to take place on April 11.

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