This archive report was first published on 2 October 2019.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola expressed his frustration over Phil Foden's limited playing time, describing it as "unfair" after the 19-year-old scored in a 2-0 Champions League win over Dinamo Zagreb on October 1, 2019.
Foden has started just one game this season, in the League Cup against Preston, due to the return of Kevin De Bruyne and the signing of Rodrigo.
However, he made the most of his brief appearance against Dinamo, scoring after being introduced as a substitute in stoppage time.
"I know he deserves to play. I want to give him minutes, every time he doesn't play I am completely unfair to him, I'm sorry," said Guardiola.
Guardiola acknowledged the competition for places in the midfield, citing Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Bernardo Silva, Rodri, and Ilkay Gundogan.
Despite missing injured players, Manchester City dominated the game, enjoying 71 percent possession and having 19 attempts on goal.
City's victory was sealed when Sterling rounded off an excellent team move, and they made the game safe deep into stoppage time when Sterling led a counter-attack and teed up Foden to blast into the far corner.
Guardiola praised the team's performance, saying, "Nobody is going to give us anything. We did it ourselves and that's top. That's why I love this team."
