Manchester City round-up: Pep Guardiola targets English spree; Burnley defender linked; Wenger reacts to Arsenal draw

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According to reports in the Manchester Evening News this weekend, Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, has set his sights on a summer spending spree on young, homegrown talent.

The Spaniard has singled out Tottenham’s trio of Kyle Walker, Danny Rose and Dele Alli as potential targets as he looks to re-build his current City squad into one capable of winning the title next year.

At the top of his wish list are the young England threesome, and it is believed that Guardiola desperately wants to sign at least one of them – with Rose the likeliest candidate over the summer.

The report claims that Guardiola believes homegrown talent is a critical part of his future at the Etihad, and he wants to add to his current crop that includes John Stones and Raheem Sterling.

Speaking before his side’s draw with Arsenal, Guardiola said:

“From my experience in Spain and Germany and now here, you cannot imagine how good the young players here are. I could not imagine the generation of Lampard, Carrick, Scholes, Terry, Gerrard, Ferdinand, they had the talent to do something more.

“Walker, Rose, Alli, (Eric) Dier, John Stones, Raheem, they are top.”

Guardiola is expected to be given funds in excess of £200 million by Manchester City’s owners to make the squad his own, in hope of challenging for the Premier League and Champions League.

The Sun also claims that Guardiola’s interest in another young English talent has grown over recent weeks, with the City boss allegedly joining the race to sign Burnley defender Michael Keane.

Keane, 24, made his England debut in the 1-0 loss against Germany over the recent international break and impressed, putting in another assured performance against Lithuania a few days later.

It’s well-known that Guardiola wants to add to his defence over the summer window, with Pablo Zabaleta, Gael Clichy and Aleksander Kolarov all in their 30s and potentially on their way out of the Etihad.

The report alleges that City are set to join a race for the £25 million-rated centre-back alongside rivals Manchester United and Chelsea with Burnley resigned to losing Keane.

The ex-Manchester United defender only has a year left on his contract at Turf Moor, with a new deal looking unlikely, and the Etihad could be a potential destination for the youngster next year.

After his side’s enthralling 2-2 draw with top four rivals Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, Guardiola has said that his side failed to handle situations in the game correctly.

City twice went in front through Leroy Sane and Sergio Aguero but were pegged back by a dogged Arsenal rearguard display – although City feel aggrieved they were denied a late penalty for handball.

Speaking after the match, Guardiola’s assessment was reported in the Manchester Evening News:

“We play better when the team is going down. When the team is down and the results after, we react because everything is lost and we react in a good, good way.

“To handle a situation at 1-0, we are not comfortable, not yet. Not yet to handle that.

“But we will be better, we will improve in the future about that.

“After the first half when we scored a goal we forgot a little bit to play. We are here to play with the ball, a desire to take the ball and play. And we miss a little bit – forgot a little bit to do that.”

Manchester City failed to capitalise on Chelsea dropping points against Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon and now sit in fourth place, a point behind Liverpool and five clear of Manchester United.

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