DBasia.news – It’s not Pep Guardiola if he’s not experimenting the squad or to specific players. This time, Kevin De Bruyne becomes the anchoring midfielder. His new position could change his career.
Manchester City gained the 1-0 victory when visiting Burton home in the second leg of League Cup semifinal round at Pirelli Stadium, Thursday (24/1). The Citizens went to the final round with 10-0 aggregate.
In that match, Pep Guardiola applied the unusual strategy. The Spaniard manager placed Kevin De Bruyne as the midfielder who guarded the depth.
In fact, since the past seasons, De Bruyne often plays in the wing area. Even if he plays in the midfield, he would build the attack accompanied by the defending midfielder behind him.
“I know them quite well, I know where they can play. Most of them are going to play in their positions, maybe one – but almost everyone in his position,” Guardiola said cited by Manchester Evening News.
“Perhaps, one striking thing is the idea of playing De Bruyne in a deeper position, such as the role of Fernandinho. Meanwhile, Phil Foden and Fabian Delph moved forward,” the manager continued.
Pep Guardiola’s decision might upset De Bruyne. He was angry when placed as the defending midfielder in Belgium national team during the 2018 World Cup.
But, at that time, De Bruyne tried to hold his anger of what Roberto Martinez did. In fact, when placed in his original position when defeating Brasil 1-2, De Bruyne performed impressively with his goal.
Manchester Evening News predicts De Bruyne won’t exaggerate this. But, he possibly has the rest of his career as the defending midfielder.
“I thought Burton played 4-1-4-1. I want to see De Bruyne get a lot of touches,” Guardiola said.
“He needs to make contact with the ball. Especially commitment. He is in a position that is ready to be aggressive. It’s been a while and is not fit in a day or two. He needs to play for 90 minutes,” Guardiola insisted.