Manchester City Pep Guardiola saw his side overcame a dogged and determined Bristol City tonight thanks to a late Sergio Aguero winner. It means they remain on course for a historic quadruple. Their chances of securing that unlikely feat would undoubtedly be boasted be the signing of Alexis Sanchez.
Sanchez is out of contract at the end of the season and it seems it is not a question of whether he will join but when will he, as the Guardian reported City have discussed terms with the Arsenal striker and submitted an offer to sign him now, six months before his current deal expires.
Guardiola was asked about a potential deal after tonight's game, but would not be drawn on it, instead making light of Sky's constant and continual transfer coverage:
Guardiola on Alexis: “you work for Sky, I think. You talk about transfers 24 hours a day. I’m not going to talk about that here. It’s your job.”
Note: it didn’t come across quite as arsey as it looks written down— Sam Lee (@SamLee) January 9, 2018
It should be noted, tone is important Guardiola was in good form after the clash, repeating his 'Nathan Redmond style pep-talk' with Bristol boss Lee Johnson and praising his team's attitude:
My players were fantastic because in football you can win, you can lose, but we try until the end. We win many games in the last minutes because we don't give up. A semi-final is always complicated.
"I said congratulations to Lee Johnson on full-time, they are a fantastic team for many reasons. They can play, they are fast, they know exactly what to do. It will be tough in Bristol.
As for Sanchez, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich are also reported to be pursuing the 29-year-old but it seems City are winning the race due to Guardiola's previous experience managing the player at Barcelona.
