Pep Guardiola’s throwaway line about James McAtee after Manchester City’s win over Fulham was a telling indicator of where the 19-year-old Salfordian stands in his career.
Guardiola said after the game, when asked about his academy talents in general: “Look at McAtee today, he played exceptionally, he was moving in the right spots and every touch he made the action was better.”
For a manager who is always cautious about extolling the virtues of young players, urging patience and groundedness, at all times, it was quite a compliment.
