Man City could face awkward £45m question in FA Cup at Bristol City

Manchester City don't need telling that every competition is important, but not winning the Carabao Cup puts a little extra emphasis on the FA Cup if Pep Guardiola's side are to lift silverware this season, Cups are much easier to win than leagues, and a chance to make the last eight by beating Championship opposition - with Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, and Liverpool all out of the competition already - is not one to be easily dismissed.

Every bit of silverware counts.

City are chasing the scent of success and a trip to Ashton Gate may stir something in those older members of the squad. It was Bristol City who the Blues beat back in 2018 in the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup on their way to their first trophy under Guardiola in what would be an historic few seasons.

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Kalvin Phillips is not the first player to arrive with an established reputation and have to take a back seat under Guardiola. Bernardo Silva was part of the title-winning Monaco side that knocked the Blues out of the Champions League yet struggled to start in his first season at the Etihad.

The difference with the second-season syndrome under Guardiola is that even if it took very good players a year to adapt, they still played regularly before they reached that point. Phillips hasn't.

Playing in such an important role in the team is a factor - it took time for Rodri to settle into it and years to fully thrive - yet if Phillips can't start in an FA Cup tie against Championship opposition he could be forgiven for thinking his chance will never come. As a Premier League regular under Marcelo Bielsa and an important part of the England side who reached the final of the