Pep Talk: “The concern in Germany is behind closed doors the situation is not good.”

The fast and furious schedule continues as City face RB Leipzig in UCL action tomorrow. The manager previews the match, talked injuries and much more...

Let’s dive in-

‘They travel with us [youth players]. Four or five or them and then tomorrow we will decide the lineup.’

‘The concern in Germany is behind closed doors the situation is not good. We need to learn that the situation is not solved. Like the PM said, wear a mask, observe social distance and be careful.’

‘Yeah of course - Kevin and all of them. Kevin got Covid and was growing in his physical condition. But it is a setback because people who get Covid feel empty. We will see how many minutes he can play.’

‘ It is not just managers - we are not exempt from society. We live a normal life. We walk the streets, we go to restaurants. The situation has been critical in the last year and a half. People die every day, a lot around the world. It is getting better with the vaccines.’

‘Of course all the guys who play tomorrow want to win, for respect for Leipzig, and respect for Brugge and PSG. We want to improve. We can do things even better - we know exactly which ones. The more you do it, the more natural it is. It is a huge opportunity.’

‘The most important thing is the first team. It’s good for them to see how you behave. Hopefully tomorrow some of them can play - we have five subs, not three like here in Europe, so maybe we can use them.’

‘They are 18, 19 years old [Palmer and McAtee] and have everything ahead and can improve everything and be better. But we think they are fantastic young players. But they need to settle and learn how we play. The potential is there and if we need them, it’s not a problem.’

‘He [KDB] doesn’t have to show anything to me. He has to show himself. Bernardo knows it, Gundo knows it, the wingers know it. They have to play good; I know all of them. They don’t have to show me who they are. They have to show themselves.’

‘I respect a lot the impact the people from Red Bull create. I expect an aggressive team. We’ll be pressed. They’ll make incredible transitions. We have to be able to play a lot of touches ourselves. We cannot compete with the rhythm they like to play.’

A very conscious and wise Pep today on the precautions in Germany. Turning to on the pitch, it seems the team will be a tad more rotated than usual. We’ll see if that impacts performance.