Guardiola pepped up by De Bruyne return

MANCHESTER, England — Pep Guardiola lauded Kevin De Bruyne as a "unique" talent after the Belgian playmaker's return to action in Manchester City's FA Cup rout of Huddersfield.

The Belgium international came on as a 57th-minute substitute and set up a goal, as the current titleholder cruised to a 5-0 win over second-tier struggler Huddersfield in a thoroughly lopsided clash at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

This was De Bruyne's first senior appearance since tearing his hamstring during City's Premier League opener against Burnley in August.

Chants of 'oh Kevin De Bruyne' echoed around the ground when the 32-year-old replaced Julian Alvarez, who, alongside Phil Foden, had already helped city to a 2-0 lead.

Guardiola's side extended that tally through a Ben Jackson own goal and another Foden effort, before De Bruyne's deft lofted pass allowed Jeremy Doku to complete the scoring.

"He played some really good minutes," said City manager Guardiola of De Bruyne.

"We thought it was better to play him in the second half, rather than from the beginning when the game was tighter ... It was really good and now, as I said before, he needs to accumulate training sessions more than games. He is still not ready for 90 minutes."

The Spaniard added: "Kevin helps to win games and there are few (like him) in the world. We can play well, football-wise, but Kevin, (Erling) Haaland, Phil (Foden), Julian (Alvarez) — these guys win games.

"That's why it's so important to have him back. Kevin is exceptional, he is unique. He was a long time out with surgery. In his first minutes, the quality of the assist for the Jeremy (Doku) goal — it's really good to have him back."

De Bruyne's world-class quality will be a boost to City's hopes of retaining the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup they won in their 2022/23 'treble' season, with Guardiola hoping his squad will soon be back at full-strength with the return of several other senior players.

"What I want is to arrive in the second part of the season with everyone fit," he said. "I want Erling back, Kevin back, Jeremy and John (Stones). When they are back we have a team that can compete in different competitions until the end.

"I'm pretty sure Kevin felt how much our people are in love with him. This mutual respect will last forever."

Foden scored twice, Alvarez added another and there was an own-goal for City, which saw defender Manuel Akanji go off injured in the first half.

Haaland was still deemed not fit enough to feature for City, but should be back soon to complement the returning De Bruyne and Doku as Guardiola's team go for an unlikely repeat of last season's treble.

City is third in the Premier League, five points behind first-placed Liverpool with a game in hand, and is through to the round of 16 in the Champions League.

"I know he can handle the pressure," Guardiola said of De Bruyne, "but I don't want to put all the pressure on Kevin's shoulders."

Arsenal misfires again

At the other end of the country, in north London, there are worrying times for Arsenal.

In a heavyweight third-round matchup in the FA Cup, Arsenal's increasingly alarming problems in front of goal were further exposed in a 2-0 loss to Liverpool on Sunday.

An end-to-end contest was settled by two late goals — an own-goal by Arsenal defender Jakub Kiwior in the 80th minute and a fierce strike by Luis Diaz in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

Arsenal has now lost four of its last seven matches in all competitions, including its last three in a row.

"We need to reset," Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said. "This (upcoming winter) break is good. It has come at a good time."

Arsenal has had 48 shots in its last two home games — including the 2-0 loss to West Ham in the Premier League on Dec 28 — and not scored a goal. That statistic, plus a knee injury to first-choice striker Gabriel Jesus that made him miss the game, could yet tempt manager Arteta to turn to the transfer market this month.

Otherwise, Arsenal risks falling short again this season, just like in the last campaign when the team faded late on and was beaten to the Premier League title by fast-finishing Manchester City.

"If the team is getting hammered, not playing well and not deserving to win football matches, I would be much more worried," said Arteta, attempting to stay positive. "I love winning and we have to win many more games.

"But at the moment, the thing we have to change, what we have to reset, is up here," he added, pointing to his head.

Hollywood blockbuster

There was also a victory in the third round for Wrexham, the fourth-tier Welsh club owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, which has a strong tradition in the famous cup competition, while Premier League teams West Ham, Nottingham Forest and Luton were all held to draws at home by lower-division opponents.

Wrexham won 1-0 at Shrewsbury, a local rival from a division higher in English soccer's pyramid, thanks to Tom O'Connor's second-half goal.

The buzz around Wrexham and its celebrity owners reached new levels during a cup run around this time last year when the team beat one second-tier Championship team in Coventry and then took another, Premier League-bound Sheffield United, to a replay.

But a second consecutive promotion is the big goal this season for the reds, who currently sit third in League Two.

Agencies