Savinho has the stamina for City´s packed schedule, Guardiola says

Pep Guardiola is confident new signing Savinho will be able to adapt to the demands of Manchester City’s packed schedule.

The 20-year-old attacker made his debut in City’s Community Shield victory over Manchester United on Saturday, with the Premier League champions triumphing on penalties following a 1-1 draw.

He joined Guardiola’s side on a five-year-deal from Troyes, having impressed last season while on loan at Girona.

The Brazilian helped Girona qualify for their first-ever Champions League campaign with the second-most goal contributions in the squad (19), registering nine goals and 10 assists.

Guardiola is confident he can maintain those levels with City, telling the club’s website: “He is so fast in transitions, so fast and he can do 30 or 40 games.

“I know he can play every three or four days. This is one of the details at which we take a look – how reliable the player is to play every three or four days, otherwise he cannot play in the big teams because the demand is like that.

“I had the feeling he is so strong to play regularly – a lot of games, a lot of minutes.”

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Last season, City played a total of 59 competitive matches as they achieved their fourth Premier League title in a row.

That tally means they have now played 120 matches over the last two seasons, having completed a Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League treble in 2022-23.

Savinho will likely bring something different to City’s attack, attempting 216 dribbles last season, a staggering 110 more than any Girona team-mate, and completing 104.

“His impact has been good. He’s so fast. He has to try to understand English a little and communicate with his mates,” said Guardiola.

“But last season at Girona he was one of the best players in the league. Important.

“Michel, the manager, helped him a lot to grow up and be the player we believe he is. He is a young player, a good transfer for the club, and we are really pleased.”

As well as stamina, Savinho will bring creativity to the Etihad, having created 53 chances at Girona last season, a tally bettered only by Aleix Garcia among his team-mates.

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His attacking output was on display during his debut, as in just 34 minutes on the pitch, he contributed the joint-most crosses on the City team with four, despite Guardiola’s men struggling to produce their usual attacking threat, creating chances worth just 0.48 expected goals (xG).

That creativity will benefit City from both sides owing to Savinho’s versatility, another factor attracting Guardiola to the signing.

“He is going both sides, playing right and left,” he added.

“Jack [Grealish] just can play left, Oscar [Bobb] can just play right. Bernardo [Silva] can play right. Phil [Foden] right and left. Jeremy [Doku] and Savinho can play both sides.”

Manchester City open their Premier League campaign against Chelsea on Sunday.