Pep Guardiola raves about Abdukodir Khusanov and admits Uzbek defender has already exceeded expectations | OneFootball

Abdukodir Khusanov’s immediate impact on the pitch for Manchester City’s first-team took Pep Guardiola by surprise, the Spaniard said in a press conference on Friday.

Khusanov joined City from Ligue 1 side RC Lens for £33.6 million in January and has quickly established himself as one of the first names on Guardiola’s teamsheet.

The 21-year-old’s raw defending style, pace and fearless presence at the heart of City’s injury-riddled backline has seen him earn cult hero status amongst the fanbase, having started against Real Madrid, Liverpool and Tottenham since his arrival.

After becoming the first Uzbek player to ever play in the Premier League, Khusanov has received huge plaudits for his inspiring defensive displays for City after a horror debut against Chelsea in January, where he gave away the opener and received a yellow card within the opening five minutes.

“It was not expected (for Khusanov) to play as much games but the situation that we have in the back-four all season made him play a lot of games,” Guardiola said in a press conference ahead of City’s FA Cup quarter-final trip to Bournemouth this weekend.

“He (Khusanov) has (a) special quality, that’s for sure. Really, really special ones – he’s so fast, brings his passion – even his face I see sometimes and body language; (he) doesn’t show but his passion in many, many actions. And we are delighted in a short time, without training and many, many things – he has helped us a lot!”

Khusanov was recently engaged and his arrival at Manchester City – which has driven a huge rise in matchday ticket sales in Uzbekistan – saw the young centre half receive a Mercedes Benz G-Class as a gift upon reporting for National Team duty in Tashkent a few weeks ago.

City also signed Vitor Reis from Palmeiras to bolster their depleted centre-back options in January, with the young Brazilian since picking up his first minutes for the 2023 treble winners and impressing with his ability on the ball.

“And (with) Vitor (Reis), (it) will happen (in) the same (manner), he played in the FA Cup previous round (against Plymouth Argyle and he’s always behaved really good,” Guardiola added.

“They (Khusanov and Reis) are so young, it’s not easy to settle in the middle of the season, new players, new league and everything, but they are really good, so positive in the mindset, body shape. We push them to practice, learn, study English to communicate because it’s really important.”