Rayan Cherki: "Literally the perfect game for him to start" - Manchester City fans unhappy as star man left out of XI for Borussia Dortmund clash

Manchester City fans online are unhappy with manager Pep Guardiola’s decision to exclude Rayan Cherki from the starting XI for their UEFA Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund. The two sides are set to face off at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday, November 5.

Guardiola made three changes to his starting XI that defeated Bournemouth 3-1 in their last outing. John Stones, Tijani Reijnders, and Savinho are the new returnees, while Cherki, Ruben Dias, and Bernardo Silva found themselves on the bench.

Cherki was a starter in the match against the Cherries and marked his presence with two assists. Despite impressing in Sunday’s outing, Guardiola decided to name the French midfielder from the bench.

The decision, however, did not sit well with some Manchester City faithful, as they took to X (formerly Twitter) to question Guardiola’s tactical choices, with one writing:

“I hate my life man. If this doesn’t guarantee Cherki starting on Sunday then I don’t see how you can forgive pep. This was literally the perfect game for him to start.”

Another queried:

“WHY IS CHERKI BENCHED AND WHY IS SAVINHO PLAYING DONT PISS ME OFFFFFFF.”

“Surprised Cherki is not starting,” a fan wrote.

“Cherki is back on the bench. Why???” another quizzed.

“They always perform at their best” - Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola on Borussia Dortmund ahead of UCL clash

Pep Guardiola believes their match against Dortmund will not be an easy one, saying that the Bundesliga giants always perform at their best in the Champions League. He also opined that it will take three more wins for Manchester City to qualify for the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League.

Guardiola told reporters:

“Always in the Champions League in the old format, if you make nine points home and one victory away always you will qualify. Now it’s completely different. I’m not saying it will be easy because Dortmund in this competition, they always perform their best and always arrive in the latter stage and always go through in the group stages. With nine points more we would, of course, qualify and be close to being in the first eight.”

Heading into the clash, Manchester City sit ninth in the league phase of the competition with seven points after three games. Dortmund have the same points as them, but the yellow and black outfit sit above them in eighth due to having a better goal difference.

Edited by Ezekiel Olamide