Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola To Build Around Young Star Once David Silva Exits

The career that David Silva has made in Manchester City has been phenomenal. While the talent of Silva is hard to replace once he leaves this season, Pep Guardiola is confident his young star Phil Foden will be the main piece in years to come.

This has been evident in the past few days upon the resumption of games in the Premier League. The recent performances of Foden have proven to everyone, especially to Guardiola that he deserves a regular place in the starting lineup and eventually as the team’s central point. Ever since the resumption of play on the pitch, Foden has been nothing short of remarkable.

Per BBC, Guardiola shared that it will be hard for someone to follow in the expectations made by Silva but he isn’t worried.

"When David said it was his last year I told the board we have Phil, so we don't have to invest."

But Guardiola also emphasized that Silva’s caliber will be hard to match.

"It is difficult to find a replacement like David, what he has done with this club," Guardiola said.

Throughout Silva’s stint with Manchester City, he was able to provide high-quality offense and a winning culture. In 425 appearances, Silva scored on 74 separate occasions and facilitated the offense with 137 assists. The four-time English Champion has already proven that he’s one of the club’s best players.

"It is difficult to find a replacement but [in Foden], we have a young Manchester City fan who every time he plays gives us something unique and special,” Guardiola added.

This was in full display during their opening performance against Arsenal, as it was Foden that delivered the dagger, scoring the final goal of the match that sealed the score at 3-0. This was followed up by an impressive 5-0 performance against Burnley where the 20-year-old scored twice.

"In the next decade or 15 years, he will be an outstanding player for us. I don't have doubts," Guardiola concluded.

This shows a bright spot for Manchester City in the future, as they are currently second in the Premier League standings. With a record of 20 wins, three draws and seven losses, it will be interesting to observe how the team plays out the rest of the season.

It will be vital to see how Manchester City moves forward with their lineup once Silva leaves and if they’ll set Foden as a starter. Expectations are high for the organization and it’ll be important for them to continue their strong performances in the years to come.