Pep Guardiola: 'Left-back a problem for Manchester City'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior ReporterPublished: 19 January 2018 4:23 PM

Guardiola: 'Left-back a problem for City'

Pep Guardiola reveals that Fabian Delph will spend "the next few weeks" on the sidelines with a knee injury, forcing him to turn to another makeshift option at left-back.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has revealed that he expects to be without Fabian Delph "for the next few weeks", but is not in the market for a new left-back.

The 28-year-old has slotted into the troublesome position in the absence of big-money signing Benjamin Mendy, who has been out injured since September and will not return until the spring.

Guardiola is wary of City's summer spending on full-backs, however, having also splashed out around £72m on Danilo and Kyle Walker, and he will therefore shift another player into the backline after losing Delph to a knee problem.

"We have a problem [at left-back] for the next few weeks," he told reporters ahead of Saturday's home match against Newcastle United. "We have had a problem since the start of the season because we decided to start the season with just one full-back. We hadn't options to buy because we spent enough money.

"We knew that and now the problem with Fabian Delph, we are going to see how we solve the problem, because it is not for just one or two games. It will be for longer. In this kind of situation, it depends on the mentality of the players. If they are able to make a step forward and some players play in not natural positions, and other guys help them, everything is going well."

Delph, who picked up the injury in the first half of the 4-3 defeat to Liverpool, has featured 17 times at left-back this term.