Joe Hart has been told what he has to do in order to play: He needs to hand in a transfer request.
During Pep Guardiola's pre-match press conference today, the Catalan boss didn't hold back and revealed he will not be requiring the English goalie's services, and he's free to leave the club whenever he wants.
"I try to be clear with my players and I was clear with him. I have a lot of respect about him as a person and a goalkeeper. I know his value and I know his talent. I said to him on the first morning that if he stays he is going to improve and he is going to understand what we want from our goalkeeper," Guardiola stated.
"They have to decide if they want to stay or leave. And if he stays here I want to help him. And then every week I am going to decide," the boss added.
Hart was left on the bench during both of Manchester City' competitive matches so far.
The Spanish manager even went on and explained why Willy Caballero has been given the starting nod over Hart. According to Guardiola, Caballero's ball-handling skills were crucial to make the call.
"I am obsessive about the build-up game. When you make a good build-up from the goalkeeper and the defenders, the rest comes fluently. I know the qualities of Joe. I have a lot of respect for him. He deserves a lot of respect. It wasn’t easy to play Willy but it was clear because of what we are looking for," Guardiola concluded.
The Citizens will play their second match of the season against Stoke City. Pep's team won't have Vincent Kompany, Leroy Sane and Ilkay Gundogan available for this match, as all of them are still recovering from their respective injuries.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
Stoke City 1 - 4 Manchester City
August 20, 2016 7:30amBet365 Stadium (Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire)This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Follow the game on-the-go
Download our iOS and Android apps to follow soccer on-the-go. It comes packed with features - live scores, fixtures, results, tables, line-ups, stats, TV schedule and much more! Sorry, no live streaming within the app.
