Pep Guardiola Praises 'Exceptional' Tottenham & Claims Harry Winks Changed the Game Against City
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was full of praise for Tottenham midfielder Harry Winks after the midfielder shone in a cameo substitute appearance at Wembley on Monday night.
The England star was brought with just over 20 minutes to go, where he added a whole new dynamic to the Spurs midfield after displaying a number of neat turns and clever passes on a particularly poor playing surface.
After the game, Guardiola praised Winks' contribution after he came on - going on to highlight how well he felt his side had done against a physically imposing Tottenham side.
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"Harry Winks came on the pitch and changed the game so they are an exceptional team," Guardiola said, as quoted by football.london.
"I am not talking about intention, when you see them in the tunnel, Eric Dier, Dembele and Sissoko and Lucas Moura is also jumping and Sanchez and Alderweireld. It is incredible how strong they are.
"I felt that when I played against Tottenham in White Hart Lane in my first year, we lost 2-0 and we could have lost 4-0. Then I realise how physical they were and that is why I give them a lot of credit in playing the way we played because it is something incredible, the way we played in that condition, so I give them a lot of credit.
"Tottenham is one of the teams I admire the most for the way they play, they have a lot of quality to play."
Despite their good showing, Spurs were unable to recover from conceding an early goal to Riyad Mahrez - with City's 1-0 win returning them to the top of the Premier League on goal difference.
