Pep Guardiola suggests ‘improper behaviour’ led to him benching Grealish and Foden

REVEALED: Jack Grealish and Phil Foden were dropped by Pep Guardiola at Newcastle after they were ‘not in the correct condition’ when reporting for a recovery session the day after being allowed to unwind following 7-0 win over Leeds

  • Pep Guardiola made three changes to his starting line-up for the Newcastle win
  • Jack Grealish and Phil Foden were both dropped to the City substitutes bench
  • And afterwards, Guardiola explained rotation wasn’t the main reason for the call 
  • Sportsmail understands the duo weren’t ‘in the correct condition’ last week


Pep Guardiola has warned Manchester City’s players that ill discipline will not be tolerated after Phil Foden and Jack Grealish were dropped on Sunday.

The City manager left both forwards on the bench during the 4-0 win at Newcastle following alleged indiscretions in midweek.

Sportsmail understands Guardiola allowed his stars time to unwind following the seven-goal thrashing of Leeds United last Tuesday.

Pep Guardiola suggested ‘behaviour’, not rotation, was behind his Newcastle starting line-up

Jack Grealish was one of two starts in City's previous game who dropped to the bench

Jack Grealish was one of two starts in City’s previous game who dropped to the bench

But Grealish and Foden were not deemed in the correct condition when reporting for a routine recovery session at the club’s training base on Wednesday.

Guardiola was in Barcelona attending Sergio Aguero’s retirement announcement that day, but members of his staff were left unimpressed by the pair.

The Catalan did not hide the fact that off-field matters had influenced the team selected to beat Newcastle and ultimately extend City’s lead at the top of the Premier League to three points.

‘Not rotation, no,’ he said. ‘I decided this team because they deserved to play — these guys and not the other ones.

‘At Christmas time I pay a lot of attention to behaviour on and off the pitch. And when (behaviour) off the pitch is not proper, they are not going to play.

‘So we have to be focused all the time because of distractions at Christmas time and everything that happens — you still have to be focused.’

One source played down the significance of the incident, while the England internationals — who went through a rigorous training session yesterday — will be hoping for recalls when City host Leicester City on Boxing Day.

Phil Foden was another who was named as a substitute in the victory against Newcastle

Phil Foden was another who was named as a substitute in the victory against Newcastle

City stars were allowed to unwind after their 7-0 win over Leeds last week but Sportsmail understands that Foden (L) and Grealish (R) were 'not in the correct condition' the next day

City stars were allowed to unwind after their 7-0 win over Leeds last week but Sportsmail understands that Foden (L) and Grealish (R) were ‘not in the correct condition’ the next day

Guardiola made three changes to his side at St James’ Park, with John Stones also benched. Stones had filled in at right back against Leeds with Joao Cancelo suspended. But Cancelo regained his place and Stones was introduced as a second-half substitute. Club captain Fernandinho and youngster Cole Palmer were also given minutes after half-time.

Guardiola’s comments came after he spoke passionately about the pandemic, stating his frustration that ‘nobody’ wears masks or is ‘protecting their families’.

The 50-year-old added: ‘We try to create a good environment for our players and backroom staff to realise the dangers are still here. ‘This is a worldwide problem, the virus is still here. The new variant is here.’