Pep Guardiola has bizarrely claimed that forward Riyad Mahrez can’t get injured because his legs ‘have no muscles.’
The Manchester City manager gave a glowing response about the Algerian’s form in recent matches – opening the scoring in the 6-1 thrashing of Aston Villa on Sunday.
In total this season, the 28-year-old has found the net seven times in 18 Premier League appearances – yet Guardiola gave an unusual reason in explaining Mahrez’s peak fitness top.
He said: “The difference last season and this season is he plays more minutes because the manager is more kind to him.
“The level he played last season was good too. He loves to play football.
“You see his legs it is impossible to be injured because he has no muscles. The final third he has something special, always I have the feeling he can score a goal.
City’s win saw them climb to second in the Premier League table, and Guardiola doesn’t believe they will be replacing Liverpool at the top for the rest of the season.
He added: “The idea is the same from day one to today, it doesn’t matter who you play, the difference is the quality, but the idea is completely the same.
“We try to put the players where they feel comfortable, but it doesn’t matter if we play one striker, two strikers or without a striker.
“Last game we scored three without strikers and created a lot of chances. Today we scored six and created a lot of chances. It’s because they move.
“But the difference is the quality of the players, Bernardo put the ball in from his apartment at Old Trafford, that is the quality, the influence is nothing.
“We have to figure out with the players we have the position they are going to play. We feel everybody is involved, everybody makes incredible contributions and the team continues to be there.
“Finally we are second in the table, it feels a long time ago, and we are close to qualifying for the Champions League next season.”
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