Leroy Sane has been left out of the Manchester City squad for the game against Newcastle on Saturday evening.
Sources have told Goal that Pep Guardiola is unhappy with the winger’s attitude.
The Catalan believes Sane needs to be sent a message and has taken the decision to omit him from the matchday 18.
The 22-year-old has struggled for game time in City’s first three games of the season and was disappointing when introduced from the bench during the 1-1 draw at Wolves last Saturday.
Guardiola said during pre-season that Sane was “far from his best”, but insisted ahead of the Wolves game that there have been no problems with his attitude or fitness.
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“In the past two weeks in training, I’ve seen the Leroy that I know and we know,” Guardiola told the press. “I am delighted about that.
"You know about his performances in pre-season, he arrived late and now he is getting back like Leroy is.”
Behind the scenes, however, Guardiola and his staff have been left unimpressed by Sane’s focus, and believes he needs a jolt in order to get back to the kind of form that saw him named Young Player of the Year last season.