“Usually, I have to say, I don’t use two strikers very often, very rarely,” said Pep Guardiola ahead of the FA Cup third round tie with Chelsea . “I would say that I used the formation with a virtual 9 for most of my coaching career. But of course, he (Julian Alvarez – PV) can play in the center position.”
Alvarez’s high performance at the 2022 World Cup made many people think that the Argentine striker should be used more in the blue half of Manchester. Pep agrees with this. He said: “Julian can play striker with one more man especially when the opponent is too deep with a defense of five in the back. He will play an important role in the future.”
Although he returned to Man City last week, but Alvarez has not been named in the starting lineup since the 2022 World Cup. In the past 15 days, Man City has played 4 matches with Haaland as the main kick. At the confrontation with Chelsea in the last 19th round of the English Premier League , the Argentine striker was also not used, even when Pep replaced up to 5 people.
However, the former Barca coach admitted in the future, he would consider the possibility of using both Haaland and Alvarez. “It is possible (the ability to use 2 strikers – PV). Julian can increase the pace of the game for us”, the Man City captain concluded.
At 23:30 on January 8, Man City will have a rematch with Chelsea in the third round of the FA Cup this season. It is likely that Alvarez will be playing from the beginning to replace Haaland, who has been plowing continuously in recent times.
