Manchester City face Chelsea in a mammoth tie at just the third stage of the Carabao Cup this evening, in what will be the penultimate match before the season pauses to welcome the unprecedented mid-season World Cup.
Having completed a stunning four-peat of the competition, Guardiola finally tasted defeat in the League Cup last season at the hands of West Ham United, and will now be desperate to continue his Midas touch in the competition.
The Citizens have started the season with aplomb, assuredly topping their Champions League group and trailing sensational Premier League frontrunners Arsenal by just two points.
Whilst success in the Carabao will be at the bottom of Guardiola’s bag, he is an exemplary manager that seeks out silverware like a magpie, and he will look to maintain standards and send Chelsea packing at the Etihad Stadium.
Despite this, rotation is necessary, and with several injuries to key players within the Blues squad, the Spaniard will perhaps look to hand a start to several of the more peripheral figures in the team, concurrently offering rest to certain stars who might have seen their fair share of action.
On the Chalkboard
One such ace that will be looking to grasp the opportunity to impress from the start against the Club World Cup winners will be touted summer signing Julian Alvarez.
The Argentinian has somewhat, justifiably, gone under the radar following the destructive impact Erling Haaland has had since arriving in Manchester this year.
Indeed, with 23 goals in 17 contests, the Norwegian talisman is obliterating standards and swiftly emerging as the leading striker in world football.
However, having overcome an ankle injury last week, returning off the bench on Saturday to score a dramatic late match-winning penalty against Fulham, Guardiola has now said Haaland is “not perfect still.”
Alvarez, meanwhile, has been a fine utility option for the club since completing his £14m deal from Argentinian giants River Plate (remaining at the side on loan until the summer) and could not fill the void once more in the possible absence of City’s £149m-rated phenom.
Scoring six goals and serving two assists in just seven starts, including a debut strike off the bench in the Community Shield against Liverpool, Alvarez is proving to be a sublime striker, one that will provide sterling cover to City’s established talisman in instances such as this one.
The 22-year-old wields a prolific nature of his own, ranking in the top 6% for non-penalty goals, and the top 18% for assists per 90, when compared to forwards across Europe’s top five leagues this term, as per FBref.
He also remarkably ranks in the top percentile for pass completion, making him an invaluable asset to Guardiola’s slick, cohesive passing system.
Once hailed as a “top talent” by former City defender Joleon Lescott, the praise will only thicken as the season goes on, with the £28m-rated frontman taking to European football like a duck to water.
With goals against the likes of Liverpool and Sevilla this term, Alvarez is quickly demonstrating he is every bit the starring Premier League striker that his manager needs, and he can provide firepower and an added dimension in the place of the 22-year-old Haaland, who will require assistance over the course of the long, long season.