'Sooner or later' - Pep Guardiola impatience at four players adds to Man City uncertainty for Chelsea opener

Pep Guardiola must be in a strange position - one he hasn't been in too many times before.

The majority of his Manchester City squad in the USA are academy players. Four or five will be called upon throughout the season and he has talked up Nico O'Reilly, but he's also admitted that 85 per cent of his main senior squad aren't in the United States.

Of the outfield players who featured against Barcelona in Orlando, maybe Erling Haaland is the only one guaranteed to start in a first-choice first team this sesaon. Jack Grealish, Mateo Kovacic and Josko Gvardiol will feature heavily, Rico Lewis has started the summer well and Oscar Bobb is mounting a very good case that he should too. James McAtee is another who is set to stay and support the team.

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Yet the truth is that Guardiola is missing all of his big names and he is keen for us to know about it. He warned of City being undercooked at the start of the season because most of his big hitters are still on holiday.

If they want, they can come back early. But if they don't feel ready, he also won't force them back. It's a difficult position for the manager: on the one hand he said he is the only one who can protect his players by giving them a holiday.

On the other, he has no chance to work on tactics, build momentum or truly look ahead to the season. Haaland's minor injury vs Barcelona only adds to Guardiola's frustrations.

It was interesting to hear Guardiola's explanation on Haaland's 'niggles'. He wouldn't dare risk a longer-term injury that saw him miss the start of the season. But he also says 'sooner