Guardiola unfazed by potential FA Cup tie with United
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is unfazed by the prospect of meeting in-form local rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup fifth round.
Both clubs progressed with impressive results, with United recording their eighth straight win by beating Arsenal 3-1 before City thumped Burnley 5-0 on Saturday.
When asked about a potential Manchester Derby when the FA Cup draw is made later tonight, Guardiola said: "I cannot control the draw, it's important to be in there.
"I know with United they've won eight in a row and are doing so good, but we are going to face a team and try to get better than we did last season.
"We went out against Wigan, so hopefully, this time we can get into the quarters and then Wembley again."
The Burnley win was City's eighth straight in all competitions, during which they have scored 33 and conceded just twice.
Key to their good form is striker Gabriel Jesus, who has scored eight times in his last five matches. He opened the scoring against Burnley with Bernardo Silva, Kevin de Bruyne and Sergio Aguero also finding the net, alongside a Kevin Long own-goal.
Said the 21-year-old Brazilian: "I have started this year on fire, I think, (and) not just for the goals. I think I help the team on the pitch, I work hard and I think I play well.
"When we score the first goal, we want to score more and more."
Meanwhile, Guardiola commented on missing out on Frenkie de Jong after the Ajax Amsterdam star inked a £65 million (S$116m), £300,000-a-week deal with Barcelona.
Explaining that City didn't want to break their wage structure for the Dutchman, he said: "We try to keep the harmony in the locker room with the wages.
"When you have no balance with that, then there is always a problem with the mood in the locker room."
However, Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde accused Guardiola of acting inappropriately after de Jong admitted he spoke to the City boss about a move to England.
Said Valverde: "You can't call a player who already has a contract.
"It isn't my code of conduct to call a player who is under contract with another club."
This despite de Jong's father admitting that Barca star Lionel Messi had called his son to convince him to move to Spain.
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now