Pep Guardiola generally doesn’t like to give anything away about his Manchester City team selections.
But ahead of Tuesday’s trip to Peterborough United, he understandably wanted to leave no ambiguity whatsoever around Oleksandr Zinchenko’s involvement in the FA Cup fifth-round tie. “Yes he will [play],” he said.
“[He is] absolutely fine [to play], I think it will be good for him to play and show the reason why he is here. He is a magnificent player [and] needs to play football.”
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Phil Foden might have scored a dramatic late winner in what could be a pivotal title-race moment and Rodri might have remarkably got away with handling in his own box, but there was one defining image from Saturday’s 1-0 win at Everton.
Zinchenko stood at the side of the pitch in tears, having embraced his international team-mate Vitaliy Mykolenko to applause during the warm-ups, as both teams showed solidarity with the people of Ukraine before kick-off - united in calls for the violence of the Russian invasion to cease.
The 25-year-old’s response to the unfolding tragedy has been emotional and visible over recent days, from his appearance at a vigil in St Peter’s Square last Thursday to his Instagram posts strongly condemning Russia’s war.
“Human beings have an incredible ability to adapt and overcome difficult situations,” Guardiola continued. “Of course when he is at home, talking to family and friends and seeing the videos [of what is happening in Ukraine], of course he cannot be happy.
“But in training with his mates, talking in the locker room. Football is so addictive, the ball is so attractive. That’s why, when they are there and playing, in a short time he can forget. Then he comes back to his wife and daughter, I imagine it must be tough.”
As words on a screen, this can maybe come over as a little glib, but Guardiola’s sense of fulfilling his duty of care to his players is strong.
During the Centurions season, David Silva’s personal life was plunged into a heartbreaking crisis. The Spain great’s partner Yessica Suarez Gonzalez gave birth to their son Mateo extreme preterm in December 2017.
Guardiola told Silva to go back to Valencia to be with his family and not to worry about football, simply to come back and play when he wanted to.
Silva continued to play a pivotal role in City’s record-breaking campaign and, mercifully, young Mateo’s health improved.
Dad and son appeared in a video message during City’s title celebrations and, at the start of the next season, the infant was the guest of honour at the home opener against Huddersfield when Silva scored a sumptuous free-kick.
“The only times I could get it out of my mind was on the pitch,” he said, when speaking to Gary Lineker for Premier League productions about the ordeal.
Ex-England striker Lineker had a similar ordeal when his son was diagnosed with leukaemia at two years old and also came to Silva's conclusion
“I would start thinking about everything once the match was over,” the playmaker added. “It was a really good way to escape.”
Silva’s predicament and the situation in which Zinchenko currently finds himself are very different. One was deeply personal but had the hope of a beautifully happy ending that was gradually and painstakingly realised.
Notwithstanding stories and snapshots of his compatriots’ incredible defiance, Zinchenko is unlikely to spot many shafts of light right now. Silva was travelling too and from Spain to be with his family; Oleks will have dear friends he must simply hope he might see again.
A similarity is the devastating powerlessness Silva will have felt and that Zinchenko now knows. It is here that the solace in football that David found and Oleks is hopefully coming to know training session by training session comes in.
He is sure to be cheered to the rafters at London Road on an FA Cup occasion in keeping with the competition’s proud traditions that made us all dreamers as children.
Here’s to Zinchenko being able to lose himself in 90 more minutes of those personal dreams being realised, to him enjoying a little bit of beautiful respite from the horrors.
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