After a dominant 3-1 victory against Aston Villa on Sunday, City closed the gap to league leaders Arsenal to just three points. The victory for Guardiola and the club, intensifies the contest between the two teams on Wednesday night. A win would allow his team to finally reclaim first place in the standings.
At the Etihad Stadium, Rodri scored a thunderous header to give the home team an early lead after only four minutes. Ilkay Gundogan then continued his strong play against Villa in the 39th minute.
On the verge of halftime, Jack Grealish won a penalty against his previous team. Numerous stars went up in an effort to increase their respective goal tally. Before captain Gundogan and boss Guardiola intervened to decide that Mahrez would take the penalty kick, Rodri, Haaland, and other players were all eager to take it.
Read More: Manchester City are hoping that Erling Haaland gets fit for the Premier League game against Arsenal.
Guardiola would have preferred Haaland to take the spot kick
Although Guardiola has stated that he would have preferred Haaland to step up. But the former Leicester City player coolly offended Martinez.
After the game, he said the following: “I like when people want to take penalties but always there is one that is the main one and that is Erling.”
Asked about what he made of the situation by Sky Sports, the Guardiola continued: “I don’t know. I need to talk to them. Usually, Erling [Haaland] is the first taker, Riyad [Mahrez] is the second one, Rodri was involved. I saw it from the touchline so we will see what they say tomorrow.”
Haaland had already converted four penalties in the Premier League this season, bringing his total for the year to 26 if he had been successful in matching Mahrez’s performance from the spot. Rodri, on the other hand, has only ever converted one penalty in his City career—against Tottenham in the 2020–21 campaign. The Spaniard did, however, admit that he was certain he could repeat that success against Villa.
“I just asked because I was filled with confidence in that moment,” the Guardiola said. “But I understand and accept the decision. I don’t know [if Erling Haaland should have taken it], it depends on the coach who decides before the game, and it was Riyad. We have good shooters even though we have been very light this season with penalties, but it is something we have to be ready to go because it can make the difference sometimes.”
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