'Always focused, always concentrated' - Guardiola lauds Zinchenko

Once heavily linked with a move away from the Etihad, the 24-year-old has gone from strength to strength to become a key player for the Sky Blues.

Pep Guardiola sung praises of Oleksandr Zinchenko while revealing the defender rejected a transfer away and “fought a lot” to stay at Manchester City.

Having played a key role in Manchester City’s ongoing treble bid so far, Zinchenko has earned plaudits from fans and critics alike this season.

The Ukraine international has 18 starts in the Premier League in 2020/21 and has played in all but one of his side’s matches in the Champions League. He shone in the Champions League semi-finals second-leg against Paris Saint-Germain as City beat them 2-0 to progress to the finals following a 4-1 aggregate victory.

Having joined the club in 2016, the left-back was tipped to walk out the Etihad exit door last year in light of a subpar 2019/20, but he has since been able to force his way into the Sky Blues line-up.

“Oleks [Zinchenko] fought a lot to be at Man City, a transfer was possible, he said ‘no I want to be here’. That means a lot,” said Guardiola, as per Mirror.

“He’s a guy who played in another position, never complains. He doesn’t make mistakes. When you say something, he reads it immediately.

“He is always focused, always concentrated. As a left-back he fights against [Mohamed] Salah, [Marcus] Rashford, [Angel] Di Maria – the toughest opponents and he doesn’t make mistakes.

“His quality with the ball is exceptional, we know it…”