“I believe in the effort” – Pep Guardiola hails Nico O’Reilly after match-winning brace against Newcastle United | OneFootball

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was full of praise for Nico O’Reilly after the youngster’s brace secured a 2-1 win over Newcastle United at the weekend.

O’Reilly has been one of the Blues’ best players this season as a new-look Manchester City side remain in the hunt for an unprecedented quadruple at an embryonic stage of their transition under director of football Hugo Viana.

Guardiola has dismissed talk of usurping Premier League leaders Arsenal, who have struggled for form of late but returned to winning ways with an impressive 4-1 win in the north London derby over Tottenham on Sunday evening.

However, Manchester City have momentum on their side and having won their last five games in all competitions, the Blues are five points adrift of the Gunners in the Premier League table – having played a game less.

O’Reilly has been fundamental to Manchester City’s rise from the ashes of late and scored a brilliant first-half brace against Newcastle United at the weekend to ensure his boyhood club remain on Arsenal’s heels.

Speaking on O’Reilly’s sensational win-rate since breaking into the Manchester City first-team in the 2024-25 season, Guardiola said: “No, I don’t see (those statistics),” in his post-Newcastle press conference on Sunday night.

“If I play (him, it’s) because he helps us for the position he helps us, not because I’m saying. Otherwise it will not work, right?

“Why do you have to run if Nico plays and we’re going to win, why would you have to see Newcastle, no. So I don’t believe in this kind of things. I believe in the effort and doing it and training good and recovering good and doing all this kind of stuff.”

Gianluigi Donnarumma was also pivotal in net for City to keep Newcastle at bay in an end-to-end clash at the Etihad Stadium, making a series of saves to deny the likes of Anthony Gordon.

On whether he expects Donnarumma to make the sorts of saves he does, Guardiola added: “Always we’ve had incredible keepers with Ederson, James Trafford, and Stefan Ortega that gave us one Premier League (title) saving Son (Heung-Min) in Spurs.

“Always we had incredible top keepers. Look at James (Trafford), the games he played in the FA Cup, Carabao Cup with Newcastle and how he saved us. But Gigio is a special player, he’s big, and that’s really, really good.”

Guardiola has handed his players three days off after Sunday’s win and after another midweek off, Manchester City will be rested well for their upcoming Premier League meeting with Leeds United at Elland Road.