Controversy at the Etihad: Guardiola’s Decision with Julián Álvarez

Álvarez on the bench: Guardiola’s decision

The match that promised the most in the Premier League ended up disappointing. Manchester City and Arsenal, two of the contenders for the title, they tied 0-0in a match with few goal situations and many chess moves. With this equality, the Gunners have 65 points and the Citizens, 64. Liverpool, for their part, escaped at the forefront with 67 points.

City had 72 percent possession at the Etihad Stadium, although they failed to capitalize. The intensity of the game and the dynamics of trying to get closer to the rival areas were the constant nuances in a match that had 18 shots on goal, 12 for Manchester and 6 for Arsenal.

The striking thing is that, despite the difficulties his team showed when generating play, Pep Guardiola left Julián Álvarez on the substitute bench. Erling Haaland remained on the field despite being injured and only made three changes: one due to injury (Rico Lewis for Aké in the first half), and two in the complement (Jeremy Doku for Foden and Jack Grealish for Kovavic).

As soon as the match was over, fans of the Argentine team and many City followers took to the networks to complain about the decision regarding the forward, and many of them expressed themselves via memes.

* The main actions at the Etihad Stadium

The famous Spanish strategist did not exactly allude to the absence of Araña, although what was seen on the field often spoke for him: due to the lack of ideas, something not common in City, several centers were seen in search of the Norwegian giant .

“What is the solution against a team that defends like this?” they asked him. “Kill someone, maybe?” The coach ironically commented on the proposal of his former assistant Mikel Arteta. A definition that caught attention and went viral.

“We couldn’t create much. There were some actions, but they defended very well and it is not easy to break that. We tried, I recognize the intention we had,” she took his words into the realm of self-criticism.

“We couldn’t press much because they played mainly long balls. When we contacted the last line, they went down very well. “They defended very well in the low block,” he continued with his analysis.

“The team makes me proud. In nine games – those that remain until the epilogue of the contest – we will see what happens. The only thing we can do is refresh our minds and legs and think about Aston Villa,” concluded the former Barcelona player. Indeed, this Wednesday, also at the Etihad Stadium, City will host Draw Martínez’s Villanos. Yes, Julián will have the chance to face another figure from the world champion Argentine team. Will Pep give him minutes?

THE MEMES AND REACTIONS FOR GUARDIOLA’S DECISION WITH JULIÁN ÁLVAREZ

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Guardiola prefers one of these players to Julián Álvarez who calmly came in to break the game. pic.twitter.com/pJEZPmGHvk

— Professor Parker 🟢⚪ (@Profe_parker) March 31, 2024

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🕷️Inadmissible that he did not put Julián Álvarez, Guardiola’s bald button preferred to draw or lose before putting the world champion. In these games Julian is much more than Halland. pic.twitter.com/XpPOSdlF5U

— SCAR 🇦🇷 (@libertario_gioz) March 31, 2024

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Julian Alvarez – Guardiola (Official Video)
Doku playing pic.twitter.com/ZWsABuVSQz

— @danycastelo666 (@Danycastelo666) March 31, 2024

2024-04-01 02:15:00
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