Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted that he made the wrong decision by starting new signing Abdukodir Khusanov against Chelsea in Saturday’s Premier League clash.
The Uzbekistan defender, who recently joined City from Lens, endured a difficult start to the game after his mistake contributed to Chelsea’s opening goal.
However, Khusanov improved as the match progressed and City eventually secured a 3-1 victory.
Softfootball notes that Khusanov had only just arrived at the club and had not trained sufficiently with his new teammates before facing Chelsea.
Guardiola has now acknowledged that the 20-year-old should have been given more time to settle before being thrown into such a demanding fixture.
Khusanov should not have played; he should have taken more time,
Guardiola said, explaining that the defender was still adapting to a new country, teammates and style of football.
The City boss also highlighted the language barrier and the difficulty of understanding his teammates without enough training time.
New City striker Omar Marmoush, however, praised the defender and described him as an exceptional player following his debut.
