Sky Sports pundit and former Manchester United right-back Gary Neville has warned Pep Guardiola that the center-back pairing of Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones will cost Manchester City the Premier League trophy.
The former Everton center-back Stones, 25, partnered alongisde Otamendi during Manchester City’s shock 3-2 defeat at the hands of newly promoted Norwich City at the weekend.
Pep Guardiola was forced to include the pairing in his starting XI as the departure of Vincent Kompany in the summer and the recent injury suffered by Aymeric Laporte left him with no other options.
However, starting from the Otamendi mistake which gifted Norwich City their second goal of the game, the pair failed to prove right the trust their manager had vested in him.
Saturday’s defeat means City have lost to a newly promoted side for the first time since 2014 when they were defeated by Premier League newcomers Burnley. The reigning Premier League Champions now sit 5-points adrift of league leaders Liverpool.