Pep Guardiola said Manchester City have not yet sealed a deal for Borussia Dortmund centre-back Manuel Akanji ahead of Thursday’s transfer deadline. On Akanki,
Pep Guardiola said: “The club tell me the deal is still not done. We are going to try.” And regarding any further transfer business, he said: “I don’t think so,” before pausing and adding with a smile: “But nobody knows.”
Guardiola was full of praise for two of his summer arrivals – Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez, who between them scored five of City’s six goals vs Forest.
Pep Guardiola said: “Both have settled in a way I could not expect – especially Julian, from Argentina,” Guardiola said. “You see how he is doing. He strugged to find the pace in the first half. But the goals… when he is close to the goal, oh my God. So precise. So good. They are both incredible finishers. The new players, these two are so young, that I have the feeling they are ‘ok, I want to prove myself to the world in the toughest league in the world’. They have ambition to score goals, win titles and the people talk about how good [they are]. It gives all of us extra energy. When they arrive it is important to feel comfortable in the city, where you live and it is getting better, it is a question of time. We want everything immediately and sometimes just be calm. After losing the Community Shield people say he will not adapt. I’m surprised how quickly they’ve adapted. I can’t teach Erling or Julian to score goals.”
City are trying to seal a late deal for Akanji to bolster their defence, with Aymeric Laporte injured and Nathan Ake missing the last three games. However, after the 6-0 win over Nottingham Forest, Guardiola said that the transfer is yet to be completed with 24 hours to go before the transfer window closes. And when asked if there would be any further business on Thursday to go with the five deals already completed, Guardiola didn’t rule anything out.
