Pep Guardiola lengthy pauses in press conference give away his biggest Man City challenge yet

Is Manchester City's squad big enough going into this season?

Yes was the answer from Friday's press conference, as Pep Guardiola said that they have the academy and that he does not like to work with big squads so that everybody feels involved and important. But they would need luck with injuries, the manager admitted, and - more curiously - that they could always do some business in the January transfer window if they cannot get who they want this summer.

Even more telling was the pause that Guardiola took, six seconds of thinking and considering what he wanted to say about the squad where usually there is no need to delay. A similar pause came straight after when he was asked if City could afford to lose any more players without replacing them, with Bernardo's Silva's future far from clear.

Also read: Man City Q&A on transfers latest, left-back, Bernardo Silva and West Ham

As the silences laid bare, the depth of the squad is a sticky situation just days before the season starts and City look short of at least one key player - the left-back that was meant to replace Oleksandr Zinchenko. Top target Marc Cucurella has now gone to Chelsea for a whopping £62m fee that City were never prepared to pay, but while the transfer stance is admirable the Blues do look light on bodies.

As it stands, they have just 17 outfield players who have played at least one top-flight game - including Cole Palmer, who has just one start to his name back in October 2021. That is the lowest number Guardiola will have had in his seven years at the club and up to four fewer than they had between 2018 and 2020.

Guardiola does like to work with small squads and he also has proven success of converting players into that tricky left-back