He might just be 18 years of age, however, Lewis displayed plenty of maturity and showed a lot of energy against RB Leipzig.
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Manchester City produced a professional display to get past an in-form German side RB Leipzig on Wednesday night. The English club won 3-1 in the Champions League group stage contest. Following their recent defeats in domestic football, it was a much-needed result for Pep Guardiola and his boys. This victory puts them in a good position to progress from their group, hence there are plenty of positives the manager can take from it.
One of the biggest positives from the win for Manchester City was the performance of young full-back Rico Lewis. He might just be 18 years of age, however, Lewis displayed plenty of maturity and showed a lot of energy against RB Leipzig in the Champions League fixture. Pep Guardiola was understandably delighted with the teenager’s performance. “What a player. What a player. 18 years old. I have been a manager for 14, 15 years training unbelievable players,” Guardiola, quoted by the club’s website, said in his post-match press conference.
He added: “To find a player like him playing in the pockets, how he has to move in holding midfield, full-back coming inside moving in the spaces – he is one of the best I ever trained by far. He is a humble guy, doesn’t talk much, but has the appreciation of all his mates. He didn’t play much this season – last season he was a key point and helped us understand what we should do in our build up. Today was proof again. This season he hasn’t played as much but he is going to play a lot.”
It was during the pre-season for the 2022-23 campaign, Lewis came to the spotlight. Guardiola had an interesting incident to reveal about that pre-season tour. “His composure from day one is always surprising. I didn’t even consider bringing him on pre-season the previous one. Carlos Vicens said ‘maybe you can bring Rico’. Because he can play right-back, left back, I didn’t know him,” he explained.
“Then he played against Bayern Munich at right-back and I thought this guy is good! “Then he started training with us and I said ‘oh this guy is good!’ When you play inside, you have to be 360 and you have passes coming from everywhere, that is the most difficult position to play. As a central defender, all you see is in front of you. He is a big talent and to find that is not easy, to come from the Academy, he always trained so good. I’m very pleased for him. He deserves all the praise from ourselves and the media – he deserves it.”
Guardiola also revealed that his teammates know that they can rely on Lewis on matchdays. “He is a member of the squad in ability. Most important thing for a player is when you gain the respect of your teammates. When your mates can rely on you on the pitch, you are in heaven. This is the most important thing by far. The players are not stupid. They smell everything on the pitch. They know who they can rely on on the pitch – and they can rely on him,” he stated.
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