Ferran Torres and Ilkay Gundogan speak ahead of Manchester City debut in Premier League

We’re back! The Premier League kicks off today for Manchester City. Ilkay and Ferran spoke ahead of the match and are looking forward to it.

Both players had a lot to say. Let’s dive in.

Ilkay Gundogan-

“David [Silva] is a special player, a legend at this club. He had a positive impact on English football, but we have a way of playing and we try to stick to it. David was an important player for us but he didn’t play every game last season...”

“We’re prepared to keep moving the club forward now he’s gone. I don’t think that means changing the way we play, but making the most of every opportunity. We have to make a better season than last year but the differences will be small ones...”

“When I was younger, the senior players would look after us and give advice. That is part of my role now but also for Kevin [De Bruyne], Kun [Sergio Aguero], Raheem [Sterling] and others.”

“Last season, we scored the most goals. Ederson got the Golden Glove. But we need to improve - we lost too many games. Some games we would win comfortably, then in others we would make a mistake or not finish our chances and lose...”

“It’s impossible to win every game but you can try to learn from defeats. We have to try to be more consistent. It’s hard to rack up 100 or 98 points every year, but if we want to challenge this season we have to be close to that standard...”

“We shouldn’t be looking to completely change the way we do things, because we have a certain way of playing that has worked well for us in the past, but there are small things we can improve on if we want a better season than last year.”

“We are all very close at Man City, not just the players but the backroom staff too, and although I got used to working alone in lockdown it was great when we could see everyone back again...”

“We are the last team to start the present season but I think it was important to have the extra week of preparation. We know it will be tricky at Wolves - they have made a good start, but now it is up to us to start as well as we can.”

Ferran Torres-

“I am very happy to be here at Man City and for the season to have started. I just can’t wait for Monday, to play my first game in the PL. I am ambitious and I know I am capable of becoming a starter. I am going to work hard to achieve it.”

“Before I came here, I knew there were a lot of very high level players. But in the first training session, I saw, wow, there is a lot of quality. I hope to be at that level soon. He [De Bruyne] is a magnificent player, world-class.”

“He [Pep] is a manager who knows how to get the best out of every player. I’m young and I have a lot of room to improve, so I thought he was the right man to help me do that. He wants me to play my game and get numbers, goals and assists.”

“It is not easy to leave a place which has been your home for 12 or 13 years. But every player has to look at what’s best for him and I thought the best thing was to come to this great club and keep improving with Pep and these team-mates.”

“My objective is just to do as well as I can, to play as many games, score as many goals and provide as many assists as possible, and of course help Man City win trophies. I believe am ready for everything.”

Good players with much to say. I must say, there seems to be a breath of fresh air and the team, looks rested and ready to go.

We’ll find out soon enough.