Pep Guardiola urges Man City players not to drop levels after Kevin De Bruyne return

Manchester City must not fall into the trap of relying on Kevin De Bruyne too much now the Belgian is back, Pep Guardiola has warned.

De Bruyne made his long-awaited return to action against Huddersfield, coming off the bench to rapturous applause from the City fans 148 days since he limped off against Burnley on the opening day. De Bruyne marked his return with a trademark run and assist from the byline for Jeremy Doku, who also came back from injury.

Guardiola hailed De Bruyne's return but insisted the plan remains to ease him back into action, adding that he is not ready to start against Newcastle next week. And the manager was keen to warn his team that De Bruyne cannot be expected to return and start scoring regularly.

ALSO READ: Man City player ratings vs Huddersfield as Phil Foden and Mateo Kovacic star

ALSO READ: Erling Haaland's reaction said it all as Man City welcome new reality on Kevin De Bruyne return

"Kevin is not going to solve the problems that we have, we are not going to do big victories if we are not all together," Guardiola said. "Kevin helps us with his talent but we need how Ruben [Dias] and Josko [Gvardiol] defend with the high line. Many things we are getting better. I know he can handle the pressure but I don't want to put the pressure on Kevin's shoulders because it is not fair for him. He has to be part of that.

"We know each other for a long time. He has a special, special, special ability to do something that is not easy to find. With all the runners we have now - Phil [Foden], Erling [Haaland], Matheus [Nunes], Oscar Bobb - to have a guys who love to run and a guy in behind who can find these passes, Kevin is exceptional, he is unique."

Explaining the plan for De Bruyne, Guardiola said