Manchester City duo Ederson and Kevin De Bruyne were absent against West Ham on Wednesday, with Pep Guardiola explaining why. Ederson was placed on the bench while De Bruyne was missing from the matchday squad altogether. Guardiola decided to hand a start to back-up goalkeeper Stefan Ortega while Ilkay Gundogan was also benched for the clash with the Hammers.
Ederson’s rare omission marked a first Premier League appearance for Ortega, who moved to City in the summer on a free transfer after he spent five years at German side Arminia Bielefeld. De Bruyne, meanwhile, put in a fantastic performance against title rivals Arsenal last week, registering two goals and an assist in a dominant 4-1 victory. The Belgium international was absent from the 2-1 win over Fulham on Sunday, though, and has now missed City’s last two Premier League matches. De Bruyne has been a crucial player for City this season as they chase a historic treble, registering nine goals and 27 assists.
When quizzed about Ederson, Guardiola said: ‘[He needs to] rest a little bit. There’s a lot of games, for mentality, to take a rest is good. We have a lot of confidence in Stefan and try to get everyone involved.’ Asked about De Bruyne’s omission and benching Gundogan, Guardiola added: ‘[Kevin is] feeling better, but he’s not here. I hope so (back for the weekend). Gundo played a lot of minutes. The selection, we always try to take the right one, but the guys who don’t start today could play perfectly. It’s not easy.’
Gundogan played 90 minutes in the 2-1 win over Fulham last time out and also started the victory over Arsenal. The Germany international has registered five goals and five assists across all competitions this season. Guardiola is hopeful that De Bruyne will be back for the weekend and will be able to help Manchester City continue their pursuit of a historic treble.