Pep Guardiola has come up with five different players who he feels can stand in for Fernandinho while he is out injured.
The Brazilian ace is out for up to a month after limping off with a groin strain in that Carabao Cup final victory.
SEE ALSO: Zinedine Zidane Rejects Possibility Of Replacing Maurizio Sarri
“Dani played for Santos in that position, so he knows a little bit there,” said Guardiola, before going on to explain why he picked the former Real Madrid man to go on as a sub, ahead of Foden.
“I felt in the first instance to play with Phil, in helping out when Fernandinho was injured, but I think in the last 20 to 25 minutes in the game, Chelsea were better.”
“But in extra time, we had the control again. With Ruben Loftus-Cheek and the others, there was a massive point on set-pieces in that period.
“Danilo is stronger in that position, so that's what I was thinking with Mikel.
“In the last minutes, there are more corners, fouls and free kicks than usual, and in that position, they are taller than us. That's why we used Danilo instead of Phil in that position. But he can play there.”
The Manchester City manager has tested out a number of players in the role before – Ilkay Gundogan stepped in last season and did well in crucial wins over Tottenham and Chelsea, and he is a prime candidate.
Fabian Delph is also capable and new City left-back hero Aleks Zinchenko is primarily a midfielder, the manager reminded everyone.
He also tested Kevin De Bruyne in that role against Burton Albion in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg, while John Stones has also had a trial run in the role.
“Danilo can play there, we can play Gundogan, Fabian Delph, I think Aleks can play in that position, too,” he said.
SEE ALSO: Premier League Title: Liverpool Could Hand Spurs A Timely Title Boost
“So we can play with two players. Kevin can play there. We're going to find the right decision that hopefully works.”
This article was most recently revised and updated 4 years ago
