Guardiola explains key selection decision and absence of duo in Man City’s defeat to Spurs | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola offered no assurances that James Trafford would be his starting goalkeeper this season following the defeat to Tottenham.

The 22-year-old was given the nod in goal over the fit again Ederson but made a costly error, giving the ball away from inside his own area to gift Joao Palhinha Spurs’ second goal.

Ederson has been linked with a move away from the club this summer but Guardiola insisted the decision not to play him had nothing to do with that.

“He made a good first game, James, and I decided to continue,” he said.

“When I take a decision in the first part of the season, not just for the keeper, the keeper is a special position of course to have more consistency in goal, but for all the players when you play one or two games and everybody thinks okay this is the starting line-up and this is the players who will play.

“I learn from many years that with this amount of games, everybody will play and be important. It’s just today I decide that.”

Ilkay Gundogan and Manuel Akanji, have also been linked with moves away, were missing from the squad for City’s second Premier League clash of the campaign.

But Guardiola insisted it was just down to his large squad and players needing to be left out.

“I said many times with the deep squad I have to rotate and maybe next game it will be another one,” he said.

“Try to get everybody involved and no more than that.”

The City boss is not getting carried away by the defeat, meanwhile.

He said: “It happens, it’s football, it’s just the second game.

“Last game against Wolves everybody said everything is fine and I said it’s just the first game. Many things are going to happen.

“I say the same right now. I know we are working and what the players are doing and the many good things.

“Of course we have to improve but I said that against Wolves in the second half.

“Step by step until we click and make the good connections.”