“When is Pep retiring?”, “Lost his mind” - Manchester City fans furious at Guardiola for refusing to name 21-year-old in starting line-up vs Wolves

Manchester City fans were left fuming after Pep Guardiola kept Rayan Cherki on the bench for their Premier League opener against Wolverhampton Wanderers. The Cityzens face the Midlands club at the Molinuex on Saturday, August 16.

Interestingly, City signed Cherki from Lyon at the start of the summer for a reported £34m fee. The 21-year-old registered 13 goals and 21 assists from 48 games last season, but failed to make it into Manchester City's starting XI for the first game of the season.

Fans were disappointed at the absence of Cherki from the starting line up, and took to social media to express their opinion. One fan suggested that he would turn the TV off because Cherki wasn't playing, writing:

"Cherki bench TV off"

Another added:

"How on earth is Cherki on the bench? mtsw. okay. Trafford as our number 1 now. Eddie is leaving."

Another fan wondered why Manchester City had handed Cherki the No. 10 shirt only to name him on the bench, stating:

"Blessed Cherki with the #10 just to bench him?!"

Another quipped:

"Our creator is on the bench"

One fan was convinced that Guardiola had lost his mind, commenting:

"Confirmed that Cherki will always get benched this season, while we'll keep starting players like Bernardo, Stones and Lewis in big 2025. Pep has lost his mind surely"

Another chimed:

"CHERKI must play"

Another fan slammed City's starting XI, stating:

"No cherki, savinho and Foden. Terrible line up"

One fan suggested that it was time for Guardiola to retire, adding:

"No Marmoush, no cherki.. when is pep retiring?"

Manchester City finished in third place in the Premier League last season, 13 points behind champions Liverpool.

What has Pep Guardiola said about Ederson's future at Manchester City?

Ederson is considering his future at Manchester City this summer, according to The Guardian. The Brazilian started Saturday's game from the bench, with new signing James Trafford preferred between the sticks.

Speaking on Friday, Pep Guardiola insisted that Ederson hasn't asked to leave.

“Apparently, yeah. Ederson didn’t come to me and said he wanted to leave or he has an offer. All the players here are our players and I want them. What’s going to happen in three weeks [before the window closes], nobody knows,” said Guardiola.

Ederson registered 13 clean sheets from 40 games last season, and is under contract until 2026.

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Edited by Deepungsu Pandit