Newcastle United held talks with £33m star - transfer let-off? Pep Guardiola speaks out
Pep Guardiola has defended former Newcastle United target Abdukodir Khusanov following his poor Manchester City debut.
While not quite Jonathan Woodgate at Real Madrid, the Uzbek endured a nightmare start to life at the Etihad. A timid backpass intended for Ederson was given straight to Nicolas Jackson, who slotted Noni Madueke in for a third-minute opener.
Khusanov was also booked - all within four minutes - to amplify the nerves on his Man City debut. He was ultimately substituted on 54 minutes as the Premier League champions turned the game around.
In midweek, Khusanov’s agent revealed Newcastle were the front-runners to sign the defender but PSR limitations thwarted the deal. This was confirmed by Eddie Howe at his press conference ahead of the Southampton win.
Toon fans were questioning whether missing out on Khusanov was a blessing in disguise after watching him in action. Speaking post-match, City boss Guardiola insisted the 20-year-old will come good.
“It is not easy for him,” he said. “He trains once and then to play against (Nicolas) Jackson, Cole (Palmer) and (Noni) Madueke and (Jadon) Sancho. It is a process when you buy a player this young.
“He will learn. These kinds of actions are the best lessons you can take. He doesn’t speak English so I didn’t speak to him. He’ll be fine. He only made one or two training sessions. I didn’t want to push John Stones, who is returning from injury, with Wednesday’s game (in the Champions League).
“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. In this kind of situation, there’s nothing much to say. He knows he made it (the mistake).”