Published 12:21 IST, February 25th 2021
Pep Guardiola KILLED me and my self-confidence: Former PL player attacks Man City boss
RB Leipzig star Angelino has slammed former boss Pep Guardiola for the 'lack of opportunities' and 'killing his confidence' during his time at Man City.
There appears to be no love lost between Angelino and Pep Guardiola. The Spanish left-back, who made his move from Man City to RB Leipzig a permanent one earlier this month, has taken a massive dig at the Catalan. In a shocking interview, Angelino claimed he was cast adrift on the basis of two pre-season games at Man City and blamed Guardiola for not having the courage to put him in the starting line-up.
RB Leipzig star Angelino takes massive dig at Man City boss Pep Guardiola
While speaking to German news outlet Bild, Angelino spilt the beans on how Guardiola killed his confidence by judging him on two preparatory games, “He (Guardiola) killed me. My confidence, for me, is everything. And when you don’t have the trust of the coach, it’s everything. I was judged on two games in pre-season, and then I didn’t get my chance for a few months. It’s hard to play one game every two months.”
Angelino came through the Man City academy as a teenager but was then loaned out to multiple clubs including New York City and Real Mallorca before signing for PSV Eindhoven in 2018. After impressing at the Dutch club during the 2018-19 season, Man City exercised their option to buy him back with a view to solving their longstanding problems at left-back. However, he made only four starts in the league before being loaned out to RB Leipzig in January last year.
Angelino has been one of the most exciting players in the Bundesliga this season with eight goals and seven assists for RB Leipzig. He then compared current head coach Julian Nagelsmann to Guardiola. "One of them gave me confidence and let me play. The other one just doesn't. So I was happy that I joined Leipzig and that I am now an integral part of the club," he explained.
After spending one season on loan at RB Leipzig, the 24-year-old signed a four-year contract with the German club earlier this month. Angelino has been one of the star performers this season for Leipzig, who are currently in second place on the Bundesliga table, just two points behind league leaders Bayern Munich. However, Julian Nagelsmann's men have a mountain to climb if they are to make it into the quarter-final stages of the Champions League. Leipzig were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool in the first leg of their Round of 16 clash.
Image Credits - AP
Updated 12:21 IST, February 25th 2021