Pep Guardiola Defends Man City's Summer Spending & Claims 'the Market Is the Market'
Pep Guardiola has defended Manchester City's summer spending after criticism of the club's outlay of over £200m.
The Citizens have spent big after a season without trophies, bringing in the likes of Bernardo Silva from Monaco and goalkeeper Ederson.
But City's influx of full-backs has attracted the brunt of the criticism, with nearly £130m alone spent on Kyle Walker, Benjamin Mendy and Danilo.
"I would like to pay less for the club, for everybody, but the market is the market," Guardiola said, quoted by the Independent.
"Manchester City did not invest in full-backs in the last six or seven last years and all four had 31 or 32 years old. We decided we had to make the squad younger and we try to get the best full-backs possible."
Guardiola has insisted that his long-term project at the club "needs time", and the Catalan coach is of the opinion that the quality of players is crucial for City.
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"I think the club has to listen a little bit to the manager in the right moment, but also take their own decisions in their perspective of the future because no one knows what happens with the manager in the future," Guardiola added.
"All the managers in the world depend on the results and if the results are not good nobody knows what can happen, but they are really good players it doesn't matter who the manager is and for Manchester City that is the most important thing."
City are reportedly still in the race to sign Monaco striker Kylian Mbappe, believed to be close to a £160m move to Real Madrid, but Guardiola has admitted City's wealth is not always enough.
"In the end if depends on what the player, the agent and the clubs want, not just economic power," he said. "Logically the best players only go to the best teams."
